The Marauders and the Cryptic Locket
by XxxRosieWeasleyforeverxxX
Summary: Between budding romance, a Gifted transfer student and keeping dark secrets to themselves, the Marauders look like they're in for a busy 4th year at Hogwarts. The 4 friends notice how odd each of them is acting and begin to wonder what they're hiding. Why is Sirius so angry all the time? What does Remus have to hide? And why is Peter so quiet all? The answers are under their noses.
1. Prologue

In the early years of peace and tranquility the Wizarding world was, in a whole, a very safe place. Witch, wizard and creature alike could exist harmoniously and, even though some of them had very different views of one another, they kept out of each other's way and somewhat respected their opinions.

In these years, a generation existed that was filled with magical families with different blood statuses and higher and lower ranks. These families thought it wise to try and preserve their family honor no matter what the circumstances. Each individual family had their own beliefs and their own way of expressing their opinion to others. These families were, overall, very different in their appearance, their beliefs, their rules and their expectations, but all the families had one thing in common: dark secrets.

"Are you sure this is safe? It doesn't look safe by any means." Said Walburga Black, standing in the drawing room of her house next to Arcturus, her father-in-law. Arcturus was holding a locket which was made of gold and had a pendant that had a snake made of green jewels on it. The pendant was about the size of a small egg and it looked as though it could be opened and closed with the latch on the side. Much to the dismay of Walburga, it didn't open when she tried.

"Walburga, I am old," said Arcturus wearily, looking at Walburga with tired eyes. "I cannot protect it anymore. As much as I wish I could, time has not been kind to me. I must make sure that, before I die, this locket is under the greatest protection our family can offer," he said. Walburga turned away from him, her arms crossed, staring ahead of her in thought. "I know this is difficult for you, Walburga, and I wouldn't burden it on you if I didn't have any other choice. But since Orion died, I have to make sure that the next generation of this family protects this locket. He was your husband. He explained what this locket means to the Noble family of Black." He said to her. Walburga turned to him with fire in her eyes.

"Of course he explained it to me, Arcturus. That's what frightens me. I know too much about that locket and what it is. I don't want to subject myself to that." She told him in a hushed voice, glancing towards the stairs to make sure neither of her boys came down the stairs. She looked back at Arcturus. "Why can't you give it to the Malfoys? Or another family? Why does it have to stay in the Black family?" she gave the locket a nasty look as it glinted under the light of the candle-lit room.

"I've already explained this to you! It must stay under our family's protection or great misfortune will come upon our family! You heard the Prophecy yourself!" he exclaimed. Walburga shushed him wildly, her eyes wide as they dashed to the stairs again.

"Do not wake my children!" she hissed under her breath. "Of course I heard the Prophecy, Arcturus, but I'm frightened for my life! This locket is evil!"

"I understand that! I've protected it for nearly all my life! But now, I can no longer protect it and you must take it because if we don't continue to keep it safe, the Noble House of Black will be Noble no longer!" he whispered harshly at her. Walburga glared at the old man for a moment before she sighed in surrender.

"Fine. What do I do to protect it?" she asked him quickly, staring at the locket. Arcturus felt a relief come over his body and he continued to talk.

"The key to protecting this locket is to make sure that you take turns wearing it. Don't let anyone wear it for very long. You're going to have to make the boys wear it some days. But it is in the utmost importance that you do not put it somewhere where you'll forget it. You must keep it in your sights at all times," he said. Walburga sighed and nodded quickly, knowing she didn't have a choice. Just before he handed the locket to her, Arcturus looked her right in the eyes and gave her an immensely serious look. "This locket is the most important thing in your life now, Walburga. This locket comes before your own safety. You must promise me now that you will protect it no matter what happens." Said Arcturus. Walburga stared at the old man for a moment before she nodded.

"I promise." She pledged. She looked down at the locket and Arcturus quickly looked down at it as well. He swallowed and slowly, he placed the locket in her hands. Arcturus looked back at Walburga's face, which seemed to have relaxed as though a burden had been lifted completely from his shoulders.

"…Good luck." He told her. Walburga looked up just in time to see Arcturus disappear out the front door, shutting it quietly. The room was filled with silence for a moment before Walburga heard a floorboard creak behind her. She spun around, snatching her wand from her pocket and was about to shoot a spell at the person standing behind her when she saw her little boy with shaggy black hair and brown eyes standing by the stairwell, holding the railing, staring at her curiously. Walburga felt anger build up inside her as she stowed her wand in her pocket and hid the locket behind her back.

"Sirius!" she exclaimed wildly. "Get upstairs, now! I didn't permit you to come out of your room! Its hours past your bedtime!" she yelled. Frightened at the violence in her mother's tone, little Sirius Black ran up the stairs and back into his bedroom. Walburga, being left alone once again, sighed and looked down at the locket in her hand, which sparkled innocently in the dimly-lit room. She stared at it for a moment before she put the gold chain around her neck and dropped the pendant beneath her shirt, making the locket all but disappear into a protective non-existence once more.


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter one: Going home

Many years passed and the whereabouts of the locket were unknown to everyone other than the remaining members of the Black family. Walburga had managed to protect the locket with help from her two sons. She never told them the exact truth about why they had to protect the locket or what the locket really was. She simply told them that it was a sacred family heirloom that had to be protected and if one of the boys lost it, they'd be disowned from the Black family. It seemed to scare the two boys straight and they obeyed their mother by taking turns wearing the locket and protecting it as they grew up. Soon, it became such a routine that they simply didn't care about it anymore and took turns without thinking. They thought nothing about the locket when it was around their necks or on another person's neck. It just existed and they had to protect it no matter what.

Walburga had two sons; Regulus, the eldest, and then Sirius. Regulus was a couple years older than Sirius and was therefore ahead of Sirius at Hogwarts. Both brothers had been accepted to Hogwarts and Walburga was ready to boast about both of her children getting into Slytherin house when they were Sorted. But, when Sirius's sorting came along, he was sorted into Gryffindor house, which brought much shame to his mother, who scolded him daily about the treachery and this day wouldn't be any different. Today was the day that Sirius was going back for his Fourth year at Hogwarts and he was as excited as ever, even though his mother was being the grumbly old hag that she always was.

"All my life I had dreamed of seeing my sons graduate Hogwarts as proud members of the Slytherin house," Snarled Walburga as she sat in her armchair in the dark and dusty living room of her house. Sirius ignored her as he folded his robes and placed them in his Hogwarts trunk, trying to block out her voice. This was the same speech she gave every year he went to Hogwarts, except as the years went on, the speech started to get nastier and nastier. "but look at the misfortune you have placed upon our family, Sirius. Just look at the dishonour that you have brought to the Noble House of Black. You belong in Slytherin house, Sirius. Our entire family have been Slytherins. This is a bad omen, I'm telling you," His mother warned grippingly as Sirius rolled his eyes and shut his trunk. "Don't you dare roll your eyes at me, young man! I am still your mother! As long as I live and breathe, I am still your mother whether you like it or not." she said as she looked at her son with seething disapproval. _I can't wait until the day you stop breathing, _Sirius thought. _Then maybe I'll be free of you. "_Sirius, if you do anything right this year, stop hanging around that boy. You know, the Half-Blood bastard." Walburga said.

"He has a name, mum. It's Remus." Sirius said blankly as he looked around for his shoes.

"Well, whatever his name is, I don't want you hanging around him. I've heard rumours about his family. There's something not right about them. I swear, they're hiding something." Walburga said mysteriously. Sirius clenched his jaw, biting his tongue. He hated when his mother insulted his best friends.

"Well, our family would know all about that, now wouldn't we?" Sirius muttered under his breath, just loud enough for his mother to hear. Walburga stood up, outraged, staring at her youngest son with hatred in her eyes.

"How dare you!" she exclaimed as Sirius focused on her, crossing his arms. "How _dare_ you suggest that our family keep secrets, you nasty child!" she squealed. Just as she began to speak again, Regulus entered the room, holding his trunk in his hands. "We are part of the Noble House of Black! We have tradition and our honour to uphold! We hide nothing from anyone!" Walburga said. Regulus went over to his mother to put a comforting arm around her, taking advantage of his favoritism that was given to him by his mother. Walburga leaned into his arm, moaning dramatically.

"Are you alright, mother?" Regulus asked with fake concern in his voice.

"No, my son! The spite of your brother is aggravating my cancerous cells!" she said shrilly. Regulus gave Sirius a mocking look of outrage.

"How dare you, Sirius! You know how sick your mother is!" Regulus said. Sirius glared at him as his mother continued to moan dramatically.

"Yeah, I know bloody well how sick she is, Regulus, but thanks for reminding me." Sirius mumbled as he grabbed his trunk. Walburga quickly recovered and glared at Sirius before patting Regulus on the cheek and giving him a kiss.

"Look at how concerned your brother is for me, Sirius. You should act similarly." She told Sirius as she smiled fondly at Regulus who returned the smile. Sirius scoffed.

"Ew, get a room, you two." Sirius said. Walburga gave Sirius a look before she hugged Regulus tightly.

"You have a fantastic time, Regulus, dear. Be sure to write and make sure that you eat enough. We wouldn't want you to get sick, now would we?"

"Of course not, mother." Regulus answered, hugging his mum back. He gave Sirius an evil smile over her shoulder and Sirius felt a pang of anger hit him in the chest. He turned to leave but his mother stopped him.

"Sirius, come back here!" she called after him. Sirius mustered his restraint and turned back to her and walked back. Walburga looked at him for a moment before she reached down the front of her shirt and removed the locket from around her neck. She handed it to Sirius. "It's your turn," she told him. "Keep it safe and remember Sirius, if you lose this, you will be disowned from this family. I will not tolerate any more of this careless nonsense, do you understand me?" she asked. Sirius rolled his eyes and turned to leave the house.

"Yes, mother. I've understood for the last 10 years," Sirius said, holding his trunk in one hand, then grabbing his wand and shoving it and the locket into his jean pocket. "Harlem!" he called for his owl. The tiny black owl twittered by the ceiling and then came down and perched on his shoulder.

"Sirius!" his mother called again. He ignored her as he took Harlem and put him in the tiny carrying cage and picked up his trunk again, heading for the door. "Don't make a fool out of our family! Don't screw this up! Regulus will be watching you for me!" she yelled after him. Sirius simply kept walking, completely ignoring her. He heard her shrill voice as he walked out the door and slammed it shut, completely ready to once again leave his ornery mother behind and finally go back to his real home.

Sirius walked to King's Cross Station with his trunk and his owl in hand. The station wasn't that far from his house, and he knew his mother would never drive him. He put his trunk and owl onto a trolley and carted it inside. He looked around and quickly found the wall between platforms nine and ten. He ran at what appeared to be the solid brick wall and went straight through it and onto Platform 9 ¾. Sirius heard a train whistle and saw the huge, magnificent red train that was labeled "Hogwarts Express" on the side. Sirius felt a smile creep up his face as he saw the familiar sight of the many Hogwarts students buzzing around, trying to get onto the train and get their luggage in the luggage compartment. Sirius watched the people walk around with his grey eyes and followed the stream of witches and wizards towards the compartment. Sirius looked for the person he'd been waiting to see all summer and soon spotted him amongst the crowds of bobbing heads. Sirius's face lit up in a grin as he spotted young James Potter loading his trunk onto the train.

Sirius's walk began to speed into a run as he caught sight of his best friend. He finally reached him by pushing many people out of the way and running at him. James caught sight of Sirius and a smile lit his face. Sirius ran into him and tackled him in a tight hug.

"James! Good to see you, mate!" Sirius said as he clapped James on the shoulder, pulling back to get a good look at him. James was a very handsome teenager that had grown many inches taller over the summer. He was also more built than he was since Sirius had last seen him, which meant he'd been working out (probably due to the Chaser tryouts that were coming up in a few weeks.) James had very untidy black hair that he'd let grow longer than he normally would and hazel eyes. He was thin and tall but built well. He also wore round glasses. Unlike James, Sirius had long, shaggy black hair that feel past his chin and had grey. He and James were about the same height but Sirius was much more thinner than James was. Sirius was as attractive, or even more attractive than James on many levels. That's why when the two of them became friends, all the girls seemed to swarm around them, and for good reason.

"Great to see you too, mate! How was your summer?" James asked, knowing it was the same as it was every year.

"Boring and long. My mum complained non-stop about how sick she was and I had to take care of her while Regulus played Quidditch with his cult," Sirius complained as he loaded his trunk onto the train, carrying Harlem in his cage with him. "How about you?"

"Eh, nothing to complain about. Mum and dad took me to see the Quidditch World cup and they got me a Foxfiend right after it. I've been practising on it for weeks! I'm totally gunna make Chaser this year, I know it!" James said excitedly. Sirius gawked at him.

"A Foxfiend?! You got a Foxfiend! You sent me tons of letters over the summer and you couldn't tell me about this?!" Sirius exclaimed wildly, in complete awe. A Foxfiend was a type of racing broomstick that wasn't even allowed to be sold yet. It was the fastest broom made yet and Sirius had been saving up his money to get one.

"Yeah! But, don't worry mate! Your birthday's coming up soon, right?"

"Yeah, in a couple weeks." Sirius said as they started walking towards the doors where they'd board the train.

"Well, I have a feeling a Foxfiend might just find its way into your birthday presents." James hinted with a grin. Sirius beamed brightly at him. One of the many plus-sides to having James as a best friend is that he was rich. That may sound awful, but Sirius was never allowed to borrow money from the wealthy inheritance that was his mother's bank account. James, on the other hand, was given Galleon upon Galleon by his parents to spend on whatever he wanted. Sometimes James would indulge Sirius by giving him a gift on his birthday because he knew his family never got him anything.

The pair soon spotted another familiar face through the crowd of people. Remus Lupin bid goodbye to his mum, who had come to see him off and hugged her quickly. He kissed her on the cheek and quickly assured her that he would write whenever he could. When Remus turned around and saw them, Sirius saw a long scar that traveled along the length of his face that hadn't been there when he'd left Hogwarts last year. Remus was also a handsome young man. He had sandy brown hair that he kept neatly slicked back, which didn't stay that way for very long. He had brown eyes and was lean and always stood with good posture but was a couple inches shorter than James. He was always very well dressed and well put together, a trait that James and Sirius did not share.

Remus saw the two of them and he smiled brightly. He took his trunk and went over to shake their hands, grinning broadly. "Hey guys! How are you?" Remus asked them as Sirius and James grinned at him.

"Smashing, Remus! How are you?" James asked him.

"Just fine, thanks. Where's Peter? Has anyone seen him yet?" Remus inquired. Sirius and James shrugged at the same time.

"Not yet. How about we go find a compartment so we can wait for him." James suggested. Sirius and Remus nodded and they boarded the train one by one.

The three boys walked down the hallway towards the end of the train where they usually sat. As they went, a compartment door opened and a very pretty redhead stepped out of it, holding a bag full of Sickles in her hand. James saw her and his heart gave a squeeze of excitement. It was Lily Evans, the prettiest girl he'd ever met. When he met her the first day at Hogwarts, he knew that someday he'd have her as his girlfriend and James Potter always got his way. James turned to Sirius, who gave him a wink and a shove towards Lily, who was coming towards them. James grinned and ran a hand through his hair. He strutted over to Lily and blocked her way. She blinked as she bumped into him and looked up at James, who grinned down at her.

"Hey Evans," James said slyly. "How was your summer?" he asked. Lily looked at him blankly, crossing her arms.

"Why would you want to know, Potter?" she asked testily. James shrugged, leaning against the wall.

"Because you wouldn't answer my owls." He said. Lily looked at him, unamused.

"Oh yeah. I remember seeing those before I threw them into my fireplace," Lily told him. Sirius and Remus sniggered at James as Lily tried to sidestep him. James continued to block her. Lily looked up at him with angry eyes. "Excuse me." she said with little patients.

"C'mon, Evans. Why don't you come sit in our compartment? We can talk, get to know one another," James's finger trailed along her arm as he spoke. "It'll be fun." He told her, grinning flirtatiously. Lily raised an eyebrow at James.

"No, thank you." she said quickly and tried to sidestep him again but failed.

"Hey. Come on, now. What do I have to do to get you to talk to me?" James asked her, confused as to why she acted this way around him.

"Well," Lily started. "You could lose the attitude, you could treat Severus properly and you could grow a pair and talk to me without using my last name. Then maybe I'd consider having a five minute conversation with you." Lily said.

"But, that takes all the fun out of it!" James exclaimed. "C'mon, Evans. I know you like me. Why can't we just make it official?" he asked. Lily stared at him with incredulous eyes but before she could retort, the compartment door opened and a boy with long black greasy hair, black eyes and pale skin stepped out, glaring nastily at James. James's face immediately changed into somewhat of a hateful smirk as he looked at Severus Snape's narrow face.

"Oh, hey Snivilly. Have a good summer in your Muggle neighborhood?" James asked, crossing his arms. Severus glared at him with his black eyes.

"Why don't you just leave Lily alone?" Severus suggested. James laughed at him, towering over him, looking down at him with amused eyes.

"You'd like that, wouldn't you? So you can have her all to yourself and worship the ground she walks on?" James said. Sirius laughed behind him while Remus stared pointedly at the floor, not wanting any part of this. Severus stared up at James with loath-filled eyes.

"Get out of here, Potter." Severus snarled angrily. James and Sirius laughed again as James got in Severus's face.

"Or what, Snivilus? You'll beat me up?" James said mockingly. Severus made a grab for his wand but James shoved him in the chest with his hands, pushing him back into the compartment and onto the floor. Sirius burst out laughing and James grinned down at him as Severus struggled to sit up. "Yeah, that's what I thought," James took out his wand and pointed it at him. "What'll it be this year, Snivilus? Wanna swallow cockroaches? Maybe a bunch of bees could accidently get caught in your trousers." Snape stared frighteningly up at him but just as the incantation formed on James's lips, Lily stepped in front of James's wand and pointed her own wand at his face. James froze and Lily glared at him.

"Don't you dare curse him," Lily growled. "Don't you dare." James looked at her for a moment, stunned but decided it was best to lower his wand.

"Whatever," he said as he stowed his wand in his jean pocket and backed off. "Didn't feel like it anyways. C'mon Sirius, Remus." He said as he started to walk down the hall towards their compartment. Sirius immediately followed but Remus peaked inside the compartment quickly, and met eyes with both Lily and Snape.

"Sorry." He said quickly, apologizing for his best friend's actions. Before she could respond, Remus ducked away after his two friends, leaving Lily and Snape alone in their compartment.

The Hogwarts express began to pull away from the station and Remus waved goodbye to his mum as it pulled away. James didn't bother, even though his parents waited on the platform, looking anxiously around for him. Sirius just sat in the compartment and stared out the window as people passed by. When they had pulled away from the station completely, Remus sat down and James looked at him with a smirk on his face.

"You are so whipped, you know that?" James said to Remus. Remus looked at him curiously as Sirius grabbed a Pumpkin Pastry from his trunk and munched on it.

"Pardon?" Remus said quickly, not quite understanding the loose term.

"You're such a mama's boy." James said. Remus shrugged, pretending not to care what he thought as he took out his copy of "Defence Against the Dark Arts, Year Four" and opened it.

"I know. She's lonely. I think she deserves to have someone who cares about her." Remus said quietly as he stared at the page. His father had died last summer and Remus hadn't really gotten over it yet. His mother was very worried about him going back to Hogwarts because of Fenrir Greyback, who had bitten Remus when he was four years old. The bite he got from him caused Remus to have lycanthropy, a rare disease that can only be transferred if a werewolf bites a human. Remus now transforms into a werewolf at every full moon and it can't be stopped, no matter what anyone did. Remus had never told his friends. Only the staff at Hogwarts and Professor Dumbledore knew about his little secret. Remus had to hide in the Forbidden forest while he was a werewolf and his friends didn't know where he was going on those nights when he disappeared. He told them that he had a special class with Professor McGonagall on those days because he couldn't fit it into his timetable but they never seemed to believe it.

"'Course she does." James mumbled as he shrugged. Remus decided to let it slide, like he normally did. James usually said the wrong things so he was used to it.

The compartment door slid open and Peter Pettigrew entered the room. Peter was a short, stout boy with fine blonde hair and blue watery eyes. He was funny when you got to know him and was a reasonable friend, although his personality was rather clingy. He became friends with them all when he saved the three of them from detention and possible expulsion from the school. James's favorite trait in a person was loyalty and Peter had that towards them all.

Peter beamed widely at all of them as he sat down. "Hey guys! How was your summers?" he asked excitedly. He was the type of person who got excited just by being in the same room as his friends. His excitement never peaked or went down either. It was almost overwhelming but he was a solid part of their friend group and they more than tolerated him. Plus, Peter would always compliment all of them on something, which raised their self-esteem quite a bit.

When he asked this, Sirius shrugged as James began to talk again about his summer. Peter listened intently to what James was saying while Remus read his book and Sirius stared out the window. He felt the heaviness in his the pocket of his pants where the locket was stowed away. He didn't want to put it on because every time he did, he would get more angry than usual and he wouldn't be his happy self. He watched as the trees whizzed past and he stared at the scenery as the four friends made their way back to home.


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter two: An interesting addition

Hours later, the train pulled into the Hogwarts platform and the four of them got off the train with their luggage. As they walked by, James saw Lily and Severus boarding a carriage with two other Ravenclaws. They were chatting excitedly about how they got to do Divination this year again. James felt a pang of jealously hit him in the stomach as he and the other boys walked to another carriage as Lily's carriage pulled away. Sirius saw him staring at Lily as they boarded their carriage and it started moving on its own as well. Sirius smirked.

"Just leave it, mate," Sirius told him. "You know she'll never let you under that skirt of hers." He said. Remus sniggered as he put his books in his satchel and Peter laughed.

"Hey, c'mon. I'm James Potter," James objected as he lounged back against the seat, crossing his arms. "I'm irresistible. Every girl wants me." he said in a cocky tone.

"Well, except Lily Evans." Remus said quietly, grinning to himself. James smacked him over the side of the head as Sirius and Peter laughed.

"She'll want me. Someday soon she's gunna ditch Snivilus and realize just how much she was missing." James ran his hand through his black hair, messing it up further, grinning at the pictures in his mind of Lily finally coming to admit how much he loved her.

"Whatever you say, James." Remus muttered, still grinning as the carriage pulled them towards Hogwarts.

After a short while, they finally got inside Hogwarts. James felt a great soaring feeling inside his body when he stepped into the large castle. He looked around and strutted right into the Great Hall where he saw the four long tables separating them by house and the Hogwarts's staff sitting at the front. He saw Dumbledore sitting, drinking a goblet of wine and talking to Professor Slughorn about something. James also saw Lily sit at the end of the Gryffindor table with her friends and Severus go to the end of the Slytherin table all by himself. James grinned at how alone Severus looked at it made him strangely happy.

James, Sirius, Peter and Remus made their way to the middle of the table and the people at the table immediately split so they could sit down with one another, saying hello to them. James was, as usual, annoyingly loud. "Hey all! Did you miss me?" he asked the Gryffindor table. Many of the people answered him brightly, chatting all at once. He held up his hands. "I know, I know. I feel the same way about all of you." he said, shining with pride. James was very popular amongst the Gryffindor house. In fact, he was known throughout the school as that popular guy who plays Quidditch. Although the Slytherins detested his guts, James was undoubtedly the most popular boy in school.

James was in the midst of talking to one of his fellow Quidditch players when Professor McGonagall came up behind him, looking as stern as usual with her hair in a tight bun and her black robes and her square spectacles. She peered over them at him as he spoke to his friends.

"-Believe the training I did over the summer! I went outside every day to practise with bewitched Quaffles. My mum and dad built me this homemade Quidditch Pitch in my back yard, you see-,"

"Mr. Potter," Professor McGonagall said crisply. James turned around, but not before giving the boys a wink (he was always getting on McGonagall's nerves, even though she never allowed people to see the annoyance on her face). James looked at her and smiled brightly, getting up and holding out his hand.

"Ah, Professor! Lovely to see you again!" he said loudly. McGonagall peered over her glasses at his hand and then looked pointedly at his face, turning down the shaking of his hand.

"Mr. Potter, I have come to inform you that you have been chosen to be Captain of the Gryffindor Quidditch team. Practises should start in a week or so." McGonagall said quickly. You could see on her face that she wasn't particularly thrilled to giving him the title right here at the table but she didn't have a choice.

James face lit up like a Christmas tree as he stared at McGonagall with wide, happy eyes. Just then, shockingly, James attempted to hug her, which didn't last very long.

"Mr. Potter!" she exclaimed, fighting to get away from his strong arms with a shocked look on her old face. The Gryffindor table burst out laughing as James pulled back and shrugged at them.

"Sorry Professor, got a little too excited." He said happily, grinning at her. Professor McGonagall straightened her askew spectacles hurriedly, looking frazzled.

"Well, uh, congratulations, Potter. I'll see you in Transfiguration." McGonagall said briskly and walked away quickly. James turned to the Gryffindor table and they applauded him as he took in the glory.

"I'm your Captain! I can't bloody believe it!" James exclaimed as he sat down beside Sirius once more.

"Yeah, you can, James." Sirius said, grinning. Even after everyone had stopped clapping, Peter was still wildly applauding him until Remus stopped him with a smirk on his face. "Enjoy it. And you'd better let me on the team." Sirius said. James grinned and clapped him on the shoulder.

"Of course, mate!" James said cheerfully. He was in the kind of mood where nothing could bring him down. Even the fact that he saw Lily roll her eyes at him didn't make him any less happy.

The Sorting ceremony started and finished quickly and James and Sirius spent most of that time welcoming the new little First Years. Remus was too busy staring at the Ravenclaw table because he saw something that caught his eye. A girl that looked in about the same year as them was sitting at the Ravenclaw table. Remus couldn't make out what she looked like because someone moved and blocked her from view, but in the mille-seconds that he saw her, he was mesmerized by her beauty. Peter hadn't noticed much of anything in this time because he was too busy talking to Sirius and James about Quidditch.

When Dumbledore stood up, a hush fell over the student body. Remus took in the older wizard's face as it looked cheerfully out at the students as usual. Nothing about him had changed. In fact, nothing about him ever changed. Dumbledore was very much a creature of habit and Remus was sure that he'd even worn the same dark purple robes every single start-of-year feast that he'd been at. Remus didn't mind that, of course. He himself was, quite literally, a creature of habit. He liked to be organized and didn't like drastic changes.

"Welcome to another year at Hogwarts!" Dumbledore began. "Now, before we dig into our exquisite feast, there are some start-of-term notices I wish to announce. Firstly, our caretaker, Mr. Filtch has asked me to remind you that the Dungeons are, for the time being, closed to any and all students due to the fact that we are trying to rid them of any troll odor that has been left there in the past. Also, First Years, please note that the Forbidden Forest is strictly out of bounds for reasons that needn't be explained at this present time," Dumbledore said. James and Sirius exchanged looks of mischief (obviously plotting a plan in their minds) with one another while Peter tried to hide his squeaky laughter and Remus ducked his head to hide his blush. When he transformed into a werewolf every full moon, he would go out into the forest. It was petrifyingly frightening because there were many monsters in that forest that Remus himself was scared of, even in werewolf form. Many of his scars weren't from him because, usually, he'd encounter a monster that didn't want to run into a werewolf at night. But, he had to go into the forest or his cover would be blown. Remus almost wasn't accepted into Hogwarts because of his 'condition' but Dumbledore required that he still attend school and that he'd make accommodations for him, which Remus was grateful for.

"Furthermore, we will be holding Quidditch tryouts for anyone who would like a chance to get onto the team. If interested, please contact any of the four Quidditch Captains for further information," Dumbledore smiled. James grinned and motioned exaggeratedly at himself and the Gryffindor table laughed. Remus saw the Slytherin table exchange dark looks when they figured out who the new Gryffindor Quidditch Captain was and they looked around at Lucius Malfoy, a teenage boy with long blonde hair and cold grey eyes and he glared at James, who hadn't noticed them whatsoever. "That concludes my announcements. Everyone, tuck in!" Dumbledore announced, grinning as he went back to his seat.

"Yes, sir!" James and Sirius said in sync, grabbing all the food they could and stuffing it in their mouths as the Gryffindor table laughed loudly. Remus smirked and took a bite of his piece of chicken as he listened to Peter laughing obnoxiously in his ear. He kept trying to glance at the Ravenclaw table to see whether he'd be able to spot that girl that he'd seen before, but had no such luck. He only hoped he'd catch another glance of her tomorrow since his second class was Divination with the fourth-year Ravenclaws. Remus tucked into his meal and chatted with Sirius, James and Peter about how they thought this year at Hogwarts was going to go.


	4. Chapter 3

Chapter three: Miss Mystery

After a wonderful sleep in their dorms, Sirius, James and Peter woke to the sound of the Remus getting ready. Remus was always up before anyone else was. Sirius sat up, rubbing his eyes, trying to wake up. When his vision focused, he saw Remus's pale, bare torso in front of him. He blinked when he saw four bright red scratches down the front of his chest. Remus wasn't built well. He was scrawny and lean so his skin looked papery thin and grey. Sirius blinked as he stared at the scars on his chest.

"Merlin's Beard, Remus, how did you get those?" Sirius asked in shock. James looked over at him and saw them too. He grinned.

"You run into a woman with sharp nails?" James asked with a sly grin. Remus blushed and quickly pulled his shirt on as Peter looked over as well and Sirius laughed.

"No, of course not. My dog scratched me." Remus lied convincingly, tucking his dress shirt into his pants neatly. Sirius scoffed.

"What dog?" Sirius asked.

"Yeah, you don't have a dog, Remus!" Peter exclaimed. Remus tried to think up of another lie on the spot, panicking.

"I-uh- got it this summer. I got it so my mum wouldn't be lonely when I left for Hogwarts." Remus said quickly. All three boys seemed to be pleased with that answer.

"What kind?" Sirius asked as they got up and got dressed quickly, not even bothering making themselves look presentable, like Remus was doing. Remus felt so frazzled from making up so many lies. He looked confused.

"What kind, what?" Remus asked. Sirius arched a black eyebrow at him.

"What kind of dog did you get?" Sirius asked him, blinking.

"Oh. Uh, a German Shepherd." He named off the only dog species he knew and quickly turned to fix his sandy brown hair nervously. Sirius nodded as he put his tie on and half-tucked in his shirt. After a few moments, the four of them left to go downstairs to breakfast.

The Great Hall was buzzing with the excitement of a new school year. The Gryffindor table was chatting about classes and who was in what class today. There were times tables passed around again, even though they had come with their returning-to-Hogwarts Owl. The four friends sat down with one another and they chowed down on breakfast as they talked about Transfiguration.

"Do you guys think McGonagall is going to spice it up this year?" Peter asked them as they ate. James and Sirius, who's cheeks were bulging with food, started to laugh loudly. Remus smirked and focused on his eggs as he looked around the table, trying not to get involved in this conversation.

"Does McGonagall seem like the type of teacher to 'spice it up' to you, Peter?" James asked him as he chewed. Sirius grinned and took another huge spoonful of potatoes and then a swig of his Pumpkin Juice. Peter looked uncomfortable at him asking that question and just shrugged with a smile on his face. As the boys continued to talk, the same girl that Remus had seen yesterday was walking towards the Ravenclaw table. Remus tried to focus on her face but she turned away to sit at the table with the other Ravenclaws (although she sat alone at the end of the table). Peter saw him staring at her and his eyes lit up.

"That's her!" Peter squeaked. Immediately, James and Sirius focused on Peter and so did Remus.

"Who's who, now?" Sirius asked confusedly.

"_Her! _That girl that's transferring here from that school for freaks in Greece or something!" Peter said enthusiastically. The other three friends exchanged looks.

"You mean Talantoúchos? The school for the Gifted in Greece?" Remus said.

"_Yeah! _Apparently she's come here because she's also a witch! She's come to learn magic and how to control her power." Peter said.

"What's her power?" Sirius asked curiously. Peter shrugged.

"No idea. I just know that a whole bunch of people at this school have been waiting for her. Even Dumbledore himself recommended she take extra classes to learn how to channel whatever power she has into helping her with magic." Peter said. James raised an eyebrow.

"And how do you know this, Peter?" James asked with a sly smirk on his face. Peter blushed and fidgeted a little.

"I…have my sources." Peter said. Sirius rolled his eyes.

"Alright Sherlock, come on," Sirius and James started to get up from the Gryffindor table. "We're going to be late for Transfiguration." He said. Remus didn't have Transfiguration with the rest of them. He had a special advanced class with McGonagall at Third Period. Remus had Ancient Ruins now and next period was Divination. He watched his friends walk off and got up too, grabbing his books and leaving his breakfast untouched on the table, hurrying to his first class of the day.

James, Peter and Sirius arrived in Transfiguration late due to James's inability to pass a lavatory without throwing toilet paper on the ceiling. He just couldn't pass up the opportunity to torture Mr. Filch. The three friends, after TPing the entire Third floor Boy's washroom, ran to their Transfiguration class. They knew Professor McGonagall would have their heads so they tried to sneak into class. James looked around the room as Sirius and Peter sat down. It looked like she wasn't here, or so they thought. James grinned and looked around at everyone from Gryffindor, who had immediately swamped him with hellos.

"Hello all," James greeted them, grinning. "Not a very lively class, is it?" James commented, looking around to see the utterly silent Ravenclaws on the other side of the room, glaring at him pointedly as they scribbled a note onto their parchment with their quills. James smiled slyly at them, going over. "Hey, Ravenclaws. Are you enjoying the lack of teacher supervision in this class room?" he asked. He wandered over to a couple of attractive-looking girls and leaned against their desks, smiling flirtatiously. "How about you ladies? How do you enjoy having Professor Crabby-pants as your Transfiguration teacher?" James inquired. The two girls glared loathingly at him.

"Bugger off, Potter." The one growled. Everyone in Ravenclaw house loved Professor McGonagall. In fact, almost all of them loved all the teachers there. Most of them spent too much time with the teachers, assuring they get the highest grade possible.

"Aw, why? Can't I sit with you ladies and enjoy the view of your beautiful faces?" he asked slyly. "It's got to be a lot of a better view staring at me than McGonagall's face, right?" The two girls folded their arms but before they could answer, James felt someone come up behind him and he suddenly felt piercing eyes in the back of his head. James's stomach sank and he slowly turned around to see an incredibly angry-looking Professor McGonagall. Hoping to save himself, James put on a stunning smile. "Ah, Professor. Lovely to see you, as always." James said charmingly. Professor McGonagall's lips were pursed so tightly that they seemed non-existent as she stared at him over her square spectacles.

"I'm glad you feel that way, Potter, because you will be seeing more of me tonight in detention. So will you Mr. Black and Mr. Pettigrew," McGonagall said sharply. When Sirius and Peter looked at her with shocked, innocent faces, she continued. "Peeves has just informed me that you three boys made a disastrous mess of the Third Floor boy's lavatory. You will all go to Mr. Filch for detention after classes end and scrub the toilet paper off the walls and ceiling without magic." McGonagall said crisply. The boys groaned dramatically at the thought of spending their free time in detention.

"But, Professor! How can you trust Peeves! He's a Poltergeist, for Merlin's Sake! He's lying!" Sirius exclaimed. McGonagall turned to the young boy sitting in his chair and stared at him pointedly.

"Is the terrified First year that was in one of the stalls lying to me as well, Mr. Black?" when Sirius went to answer her question, she interrupted him. "I think not. That is the end of this discussion, Mr. Black. I will see you in detention with Mr. Pettigrew and Mr. Potter." McGonagall went to turn around again but James spoke up.

"But, Professor, that's not fair!" James whined loudly. McGonagall turned to look at him with I-don't-care eyes.

"I'm sorry you think so, Mr. Potter. Besides, I am Professor Grumpy-Pants. I don't think from the sound of that unimaginative nickname that I'd be fair, don't you agree?" McGonagall said. James was gobsmacked for a moment before she spoke again. "Now, Potter, if you would be so kind as to sit down, I'd like to teach my class." She said crisply. James looked at her with outraged eyes for a moment before he strutted over to his seat, ran his fingers through his messy black hair, as if to show that this confrontation didn't matter, and plopped onto his seat, slouching immediately. McGonagall looked satisfied and quickly walked to the front of the room, taking out her wand. "Now, today we will be starting the term off with transforming something as simple as this rock-," she held up a rock that had been placed on a podium before her. She waved her wand and the rock suddenly became a long, silver sword. Everyone looked at it in awe, gobsmacked. "-Into a weapon. Now, you may be thinking, why is this useful? Well, the answer is right in front of you. You face many dangers, even today, that cannot be solved with something as simple as a wand." McGonagall explained. A girl from Ravenclaw raised her hand. McGonagall acknowledged her.

"But, Professor, what can't be solved with a wand? Where would we use this spell in real life?" she asked her. McGonagall pondered this for a moment before setting the sword down.

"Well, you see Miss. Livingston, there is a tale that is told for youngsters, quite like yourselves, who are practicing magic. In this tale, there is a creature of deadly power that cannot be stopped by magic of any kind. This creature was an Eagle of substantial size that spent years terrorizing small villages and slaughtering countless numbers of its people. A young warlock ventured into the mighty Eagle's lair and sought to destroy the beast, along with his friend, a young witch who was practised in magical arts. The young warlock, however, did not read up on his mythology and he tried to destroy the beast with magic. The Eagle quickly killed him with one slash of its giant talon, leaving the young lady all by herself with this horrible beast. But, the young witch was cunning. She had read many books on this creature and knew exactly how to kill it. This young lady transformed a simple tree branch into a mighty bow and arrow and she fought the beast. Soon, she killed it and now, the legend lives on about the cunning young witch who destroyed this foul creature. Can anyone tell me who the young witch was?" McGonagall asked the class. Everyone was silent for a moment but then, a voice rang clear from the back of the classroom.

"Rowena Ravenclaw."

Everyone in the class turned around to see who had entered the room. When Sirius turned around, he saw a beautiful girl standing there in her Ravenclaw robes. Sirius looked at her more closely and saw that she was the girl who Remus spotted sitting at the Ravenclaw table earlier that day and was also the girl that Peter said came from the "school for freaks" in Greece. As Sirius stared at the girl, he took in how extraordinarily beautiful she was. This girl had long raven-feather black hair that fell down her back in tight ringlets. She had very pale skin and very European features. The angle of her face was soft, not sharp and pointed. Her eyes were a stunning shade of bright electric blue with a ring of darker blue around the outside of the Iris. She had soft, pink lips and nearly perfectly shaped eyebrows. She was also medium height, or shorter, and had a slight frame. Overall, her appearance seemed…exotic. And Sirius liked it a lot.

The silence in the class was overwhelming for a few seconds before Professor McGonagall broke it.

"Ah, yes, Miss. Ziva! I was told you'd be coming. Class, this is Ziva. She's new to our school. I want you all to make her feel as welcome as possible." Professor McGonagall said, a slightly lighter tone to her voice. The class murmured to one another for a moment, whispering about her and the gossip that they'd heard about where she came from. "Come along now, Miss. Ziva. You can sit down beside Miss. Livingston over here." she said, gesturing to the chair beside the frightened-looking Ravenclaw. The girl, Ziva, looked around at the class as she walked slowly to her seat, holding her Transfiguration book to her chest. She seemed almost too calm as she sat down beside the girl and set her book on the desk. Everyone turned and looked at her as she looked at them all each in the eye. One by one, right after their eyes met, each person would turn away, looking uncomfortable. Sirius didn't get a chance to meet eyes with her and he was curious as to why the students were reacting that way towards her.

"And also," McGonagall started again to get back on track and to direct attention away from Ziva. "Miss. Ziva was quite right. Rowena Ravenclaw did battle the great Eagle and won the battle. She was known for her love for eagles and it was her spirit animal, even though she had the last name Ravenclaw. The Eagle represented her spirit more than a Raven did. Who can tell me why this is important to Hogwarts in particular?" she addressed the class again. Ziva put up her hand.

"Because the symbol of Ravenclaw is an Eagle, the same Eagle that was said to be the one that she slayed when she was young." Ziva said quickly, talking quite fast. Her voice was quite beautiful, also. It had a slight Greek accent in it and it was soft and knowledgeable, much like, it seemed, the rest of her was.

"Correct, Miss. Ziva, ten points to Ravenclaw," McGonagall said with a look of surprise on her face. She seemed intrigued. "Tell me, Miss. Ziva, how much more do you know of Rowena Ravenclaw's past?" she inquired. James and Peter exchanged looks while Sirius simply stared at the back of Ziva's head. Professor McGonagall was not the type of teacher to stray from her lesson, so this was an interesting twist from the ordinary.

"Well, I've heard that legend and many others. There is a conspiracy theory that I am currently reading about that suggests that the young warlock killed by the beast was also Rowena Ravenclaw's lover and that they had run away together to be married and start a new life away from pretentious parents, but when the warlock decided to try to kill the eagle, and he was killed, Rowena was heartbroken for years afterwards. There is also another theory that her daughter, Helena, was the warlock's child because she noticed she was pregnant four months after they had originally ran away and went to get married. The book states that she was seeing no other man at the time and that she never remarried and raised her daughter on her own." Ziva said. After that, she seemed embarrassed that she'd said that much so quickly. Sirius even saw her cheeks redden from staring at the side of her face long enough.

"Very good, Miss. Ziva, ten more points to Ravenclaw. I am very impressed with your knowledge on your house. Ravenclaws, you should follow in suit and read the book "_The Eagle and the Raven." _By Humplebatch Pentlend, an author who wrote many books about Rowena Ravenclaw and her life leading up to and including the founding of Hogwarts," Professor McGonagall told them. The Ravenclaws all took out their quills and wrote the title and the author down on their note pages. "Now, moving on. I would like you to take out your books and turn to page 23." McGonagall ordered as she returned to her normal everyday lesson.

James turned to Sirius, who was still staring in dazed wonder at the back of Ziva's head and James grinned.

"Fancy her, eh?" James said slyly. Sirius broke out of his façade and gave James a smack on the arm.

"Hey! Keep your voice down!" Sirius whispered frantically. James chuckled quietly as McGonagall wrote out how to say the spell phonetically on the chalk board at the front of the class.

"I'm just saying, mate, even though I don't have a thing for Greek chicks, I would totally reconsider if it were her." James said to Sirius.

"Don't you even try, James. You can't even get Lily Evans to go out with you and something tells me that this girl is going to be harder than Lily." Sirius said, getting slightly protective. James laughed quietly again.

"Calm down, bud. I've got a thousand chicks chasing after me all at once," He whispered. "I don't need another one doing the same thing. Besides, you deserve a girl. I say you talk to her after class. Maybe even ask her out." James said.

"…How do I do that?" Sirius asked him nervously. James put his arm over Sirius's shoulders, grinning.

"Just go with it, man. She'll totally dig you. Maybe try flipping your hair. Girls love hair, mate. It's like drugs to them, or something. They love it. Oh, and compliment her loads. Girls love getting complimented too." James said. Sirius looked at Ziva again and a smile lit up his face.

"Thanks for the advice. I think I'm going to do it." Sirius said with triumph in his voice. James patted him on the back hard, grinning like a Cheshire Cat.

"Atta boy!" James said a little too loudly. McGonagall turned around sharply, staring at the two of them at the back of the classroom.

"Potter! Black! If you can't control your outbursts, I'll have you in detention for a week!" McGonagall threatened. The two boys immediately piped down, muttering "yes professor" as they took out their books and turned to page 23.

When the bell rang to signal the end of Transfiguration class, everyone got up and grabbed their books, leaving the class room. Sirius had thought about nothing but Ziva all period and he was going to do it. He saw her gathering her books and quill. Sirius took a deep breath and just went for it. He strode over to Ziva and stopped right behind her.

"Hey there," Sirius said with confidence. Ziva heard him and slowly turned to face him. As soon as Sirius saw her eyes, he understood why people looked away from her after a few seconds of looking into them. Her eyes seemed to look too deeply into his eyes and it felt like his privacy was being violated. But Sirius didn't look away. Maybe if he acted like he didn't care, he'd be able to impress her more.

Ziva looked at the young boy standing in front of her with curious, but calm eyes. "Hello." She greeted him. Sirius smiled charmingly.

"I was impressed by how much stuff you knew about Rowena Ravenclaw. How many books have you read on her?" Sirius asked her. Ziva stared at him.

"A few. Would you excuse me?" Ziva asked politely, trying to sidestep him. Instead of blocking her path, Sirius walked beside her, snatching his books from his desk as they exited the Transfiguration classroom and entered a hallway.

"So, I heard you're from Greece. Fancy place, huh?" Sirius said, keeping up with her fast stride easily.

"Quite." Was all Ziva said as she walked. Sirius tried to keep the conversation going.

"So, what school did you go to before Hogwarts?" Sirius asked her. Ziva arched an eyebrow.

"I think you already know." Ziva said.

"And why would you think that?" Sirius inquired.

"Because that little squirt of a boy told you where I came from at breakfast, that's why." Ziva said. She wasn't being rude. In fact, she thought Sirius was quite handsome, but she could feel the cockiness coming from him and it made her somewhat defensive.

"Oh…you mean Peter?" Sirius said quickly.

"Yes, I'm sure that's his name," She said as they rounded the corner of a hallway. She looked at Sirius. "Is there a particular reason you're following me everywhere?" she inquired. Sirius grinned at her.

"I think a girl like you deserves to be followed to the ends of the earth." Sirius said with overwhelming charm. Ziva stared at him blankly for a moment.

"That's the best you can come up with? Sir, if you want to pick me up, you'll have to try harder than that." Ziva said, playing it hard. Sirius felt something like disappointment in himself leak into his chest.

"I-uh, how did you know I was trying to pick you up? I could have just been aching for your company." Sirius said quickly, trying to cover his embarrassment.

"But you weren't. A young man like you wouldn't want to be in my company unless you were trying to figure out if the gossip was true." Ziva said with knowledge.

"Oh, you mean the gossip about you coming from a freak house?" Once the words were out of Sirius's mouth, he immediately regretted it. He saw Ziva's face flicker with a new emotion: anger. "…Oh…I-I didn't mean that-,"

"No, on the contrary. You heard it everywhere and it fits, right? The mystery is solved. I understand." Ziva said with biting sarcasm. Sirius tried to backtrack out of this situation.

"No, I didn't mean that, Ziva, I just was curious about you." Sirius said truthfully.

"The entire school is curious about me but they aren't asking me whether I'm from a loony-bin, are they?" Ziva said with fire in her voice, walking faster. Sirius quickly stepped in front of her, making her stop.

"That's not what I meant at all!" he sighed quickly. "I just wanted to know whether the rumors were true. Besides, I really don't care if you came from a loony-bin," Ziva exhaled angrily and tried to walk around him but he stopped her again. "Okay, okay, I'm sorry! Look, we got off on the wrong foot, okay? Let's start over," Sirius said to her. When Ziva didn't move or say anything, he held out his hand to her, giving her a smile. "I'm Sirius, Sirius Black." He introduced himself. Ziva hesitated, looking at his hand. She slowly shifted her books to her other hip and freed her hand. She took his hand and shook it gently.

"Ziva." Was all she said.

"Ziva what?" Sirius asked. Ziva raised an eyebrow.

"What?"

"Like, what's your last name?" he clarified.

"I don't tell people my last name." Ziva said firmly.

"Well…how about your middle name?" he tried again.

"Ziva _is _my middle name." Ziva told Sirius, holding her books to her chest. Sirius's brow furrowed in confusion.

"Then what's your first name?" He inquired, so confused.

"I don't tell people my first name either." She said. Sirius felt frazzled.

"Well, what would you like me to call you?" Sirius asked her. Ziva began to walk again and Sirius followed.

"Anything but freak." Ziva said to him, a slight smirk on her face. Sirius felt as though he was getting somewhere.

"Deal! I'll call you…Olga. How about that?" Sirius asked playfully, grinning. Ziva rolled her eyes, trying desperately not to smile.

"That's attractive." She told him, holding back giggles. Sirius laughed.

"I know. I am quite attractive." Sirius said with a flick of his black hair. Ziva laughed quietly, putting her hand over her mouth, trying not to lose control of her laughing.

"Maybe lose the cockiness and you'll be twice as attractive." Ziva told him. Sirius smiled brightly.

"So, you do think I'm attractive?" Sirius said with a cocky smile. Ziva looked at him with a raised eyebrow.

"Not when you act like that," she said. "Cockiness is the least attractive thing in a guy. Well, to me anyway."

"Well, in that case, I'll try to be less cocky for you." Sirius said with a smile. Ziva gave him a fake smile.

"Oh, you're too kind." She said with fake sweetness. Sirius laughed.

"So, why are people calling you a freak? Is there something other than magic that you can do?" Sirius asked. "Or are you just mentally insane?"

"I'm not mentally insane in any way," Ziva told him. "I went to a school for the gifted. That's all." She said quickly.

"So, you're gifted? In what way?" Sirius asked. Ziva looked at him with her big electric blue eyes as she came to a stop.

"I'd rather not tell you right now, Mr. Black. I don't know you very well. Besides, how will I know that you won't tell anyone?" Ziva asked him.

"First of all, Mr. Black was my father," Sirius started. "I'm Sirius and only Sirius. And secondly, I would never tell anyone anything that you didn't want me to." He pledged. Ziva looked at him hesitantly.

"Maybe later. For now, I have to get to class. I suggest you do the same," she said, opening the door to the Divination classroom. She looked at him once more. "Goodbye." She said quickly and she entered the classroom, leaving a stunned Sirius outside the door.

Ziva stepped inside the Divination classroom and saw many people were already sitting down. Whispers followed her as she sat down at a separate table all by herself. She looked over and saw three girls giggling. One of them had long blonde hair and blue eyes, the other had brown hair and the third woman had short black hair with cold, black eyes. She knew immediately that this was going to be problematic with them in the class room because they were whispering about her a little too loudly. Ziva didn't know who they were but a boy in the class did: Remus Lupin sat in the Gryffindor section of the classroom and he looked at the girls. Narsissa Black, Bellatrix Black and Pepper Parkinson sat together at their table, whispering about Ziva. Remus even heard them talk about how unclean her blood was, seeing as she was a Muggle-Born. Ziva ignored them, though and she caught eyes with the boy, Remus, who looked over just in time to catch eyes with her. Remus immediately recognized her as the girl sitting at the Ravenclaw table at breakfast. Remus was intrigued by her eyes and couldn't help but give the girl a slight smile. Remus thought she was so beautiful. He had to talk to her. Of course, Remus wasn't cocky like James or Sirius. He was much more of a gentlemen who thought of the girl before he thought of himself. Maybe that's why most of the girls at Hogwarts didn't want to date him. He'd been told before that girls liked bad boys and he definitely wasn't a 'bad boy'. He was the complete opposite.

When class finally started, Mr. Limmer, an elderly man who was very close to retirement came out of his office carrying a cup of tea and his wand. This man was short, balding and had a scruffy beard. He also had a pair of thick spectacles perched on the edge of his nose and a very wrinkly, grouchy-looking face. He wore dust-grey old patched robes that looked like they hadn't been washed in a while and these black loafers that he had probably dug out of his father's trunk.

Mr. Limmer came and sat down at the table with his tea and wand and stared out at the few Gryffindors, the many Ravenclaws and the few Slytherins that had the brains to be in this class. Remus was shocked when he figured out Bellatrix had been asked to come in this class because she was not bright whatsoever. She spent most of her time lighting things on fire with her wand or zapping flies out of the air for fun. Pepper Parkinson was the same way. Narsissa, on the other hand, was very smart. She was sly and cunning, much like the traits of any good Slytherin. Remus was in this class because he was of a higher academic level than most of his fellow Gryffindors. There were only two other Gryffindors in the classroom, there were about five Slytherins and the rest of the thirty classmates were Ravenclaws. The Divination classroom was very hot and stuffy, due to all the incense that Mr. Limmer was burning. Remus found it hard to concentrate on anything with the diminishing air quality.

"Welcome Advanced Fourth year students," Mr. Limmer said in his monotone voice. "Today we will be doing an introduction to Advanced Academic Divination. In this course, we will be focusing on Prophecy readings, crystal balls, palm reading and lunar signs," he said to the class. Remus felt his stomach twist uncomfortably as he thought about the last course. He knew Professor Limmer would focus highly on werewolf studies in that unit and he wasn't exactly thrilled to learn about everything he'd already experienced as a werewolf and, knowing Professor Limmer, he'd focus on the negative nature of the werewolf.

The Divination class seemed to pass by quicker than Remus had imagined and it was now time for lunch. When the bell rang, Remus got to his feet and stretched a little before he picked up his Divination book and also the supplies Professor Limmer had given out for the class. Remus looked over to see Ziva collecting her books. She quickly walked out but she went too fast and her notebook fell to the ground behind her and she didn't notice. Remus leaned down and picked it up and looked at the page it landed on. There was a sketch in it of the moon and the cycle of moons. Apparently, she already knew about the moon cycles. Remus looked at the door as she walked away and followed her. He ran down the hall and caught up with her. He tapped her on the arm. "Miss?" he said. When Ziva turned, they met eyes and Remus went warm inside, his heart galloping fast. She was so beautiful.

Ziva stared at the young boy standing in front of her and she smiled at how timid he seemed. "Yes, can I help you?" she asked. Remus quickly held out her notepad to her.

"Y-you dropped this on your way out." Remus stuttered, blushing a little. Ziva smiled. She thought he was so cute.

"Oh," she took her notepad back. "Thank you. I'm always dropping things, it seems." She said with a slight embarrassment in her voice. Remus smiled at her.

"I know how you feel. I once dropped one of Mr. Limmer's Crystal Balls. It shattered everywhere. I think that's why he doesn't like me anymore. He said I let 'spirits of the Elders' out," Remus shrugged. "I dunno. He hasn't liked me since." He admitted. Zima giggled, smiling.

"Wow, he's such a grump. I think he needs to retire. He's too old for this kind of thing." Ziva said.

"Yeah. There's just that point where you've got to say enough." Remus said to her. Ziva giggled and nodded. She looked at Remus and held out her hand.

"I'm Ziva." She introduced herself. Remus smiled and shook her hand, noticing how small it was compared to his long hand.

"Remus. I heard you were coming to Hogwarts." He commented. Ziva's face immediately dropped a little and she pulled her hand away.

"Oh. So, you think I came from a school for freaks, too?" Ziva asked him, really fed up with the whole stereotyping ordeal. Remus shook his head, looking confused.

"Of course not. You came from Talantoúchos, a school for the gifted, right?" Remus asked her. Ziva blinked, totally surprised.

"Yeah…yeah, I did. But how did you know that?" she asked. He even _pronounced _the name of her school properly. She was in total shock.

"I've read about it," Remus said nonchalantly, shrugging. "I read the book on the school's history. It's an amazing place. I find it fascinating." He said truthfully. Ziva looked blankly at him for a moment, not actually believing him.

"You found it…fascinating?" Ziva asked.

"Yeah! I'd love to visit a place like that and talk to the people. I'm intrigued by how diverse the school population is too. Usually, Hogwarts only admits students from the UK but your school accepts people with gifts from all corners of the world. It's brilliant." He told her with a smile. Ziva's face was so filled with shock that it took a minute to actually recover.

"Well…you're the only person I've ever met that says you enjoy the concept of my school." She said with a faint air of curiousness to her tone. Remus smiled brightly.

"Oh, I don't just _enjoy_ the concept- I love it! I'd love to have a gift like those people… I mean, like you guys do," He said, backtracking a bit. "I'm terribly sorry. I talk far too much." He said, embarrassed. Ziva smiled at him.

"It's funny. I never got that feeling from you." she said curiously.

"That feeling?" Remus questioned. It was Ziva's turn to backtrack this time.

"Oh, I just meant that I, uh, thought you were really quiet." She told him quickly. Remus accepted that answer and smiled.

"Oh, well, I'm normally very quiet. I just read and mind my own business. But when someone brings up my favorite books, I could just talk for hours," Remus admitted. He then began to backtrack again. "I'm sorry. I must sound like such a complete nerd." He muttered. Ziva giggled at him and smiled.

"No, I like it," she told him. "I like it a lot." She smiled. Remus blushed deeply. The warning bell rang. Remus felt the pull of anxiety on his chest, which usually happens when he's late for class, but he didn't want to leave her. He wanted to talk even more than they had. Ziva seemed the same way because when she heard the bell, she quickly asked him a question. "Would you like to…um, hang out after class?" she asked him awkwardly. Remus felt his chest lighten with excitement as he smiled down at her.

"I would love to! Where should I meet you?" Remus asked her. Ziva bit her lip.

"Well, uh, I have no idea where anything in this castle is yet." She explained.

"Oh, well, how about I meet you at your last class then?" Remus suggested quickly. Ziva smiled.

"Okay. It's Herbology with Professor Sprout, Greenhouse 4." She told him. Remus grinned.

"Alright, great! I'll see you then." he said.

"See you later, Remus." She smiled and left to her next class of the day. Remus stared after her for a moment before he rushed to Ancient Ruins. For once in his life, he was actually excited for classes to come to an end.


	5. Chapter 4

Chapter four: Isolation 

The day ended quicker than Remus could have imagined. His other classes didn't seem important. He just wanted the day to be over so he could see Ziva again.

As Remus walked down the hall, his hand in his pocket, the other holding his books, he heard someone running after him. He turned around to see Peter jogging hurriedly, sweating and breathing hard, his blonde hair dripping with perspiration. Remus stopped so he could catch his breath. Peter came to a halt in front of him, holding his knees, gasping for breath.

"J-James, Sirius and I are-are due in detention in five m-minutes." Peter choked out. Remus looked at him with curious eyes.

"Why have you got detention this time?" he inquired.

"W-we wrecked the Fourth Floor boy's loo before first period," Peter panted. Remus smirked.

"I leave you three alone for five minutes," Remus started.

"We know, we know, okay? We were just fooling around and Peeves caught us! It's so unfair!" Peter exclaimed.

"Well, I'm sorry it's unfair, Peter. Maybe you guys should learn how to keep out of trouble." Remus suggested amusingly.

"Maybe you should learn to loosen up for once!" Peter said, crossing his arms. Peter didn't like it when people insulted James or Sirius, even if it was Remus. Remus just looked at him.

"Was there something else you needed, Peter?" Remus asked him. Peter nodded.

"Yeah, Sirius and James asked me to ask you whether you'd come down and clean it quickly with your wand. Filtch would never know. It'd be perfect! Then we could hang out afterwards." Peter said excitedly, his mood changing so fast.

"Oh, sorry Peter, I can't. I'm meeting someone right now." Remus told him. Peter looked up at Remus with a confused look on his face.

"…Meeting someone? Who?" he asked nosily.

"…Er…Ziva. You know, the new girl?" Remus said to him. Peter's bloodshot blue eyes widened.

"You've talked to her?!"

"Yeah, I have. She's really nice, actually." Remus told him. Peter gawked at him.

"Merlin's Beard!" Peter whispered, in total shock. Remus seemed a little apprehensive by his reaction so he just started to say goodbye.

"Well, uh, I should get going. Tell Sirius and James I say hi. See you later." Remus bid him and then walked away towards Ziva's last class. Peter watched him walk away for a moment before he turned and ran back to Sirius and James, who were just about to go to detention. He caught up with the two of them, who were laughing.

"Guys! Y-you'll never guess what-!"

"Ah, Peter! Did you get Remus to come help us with our little…predicament?" James asked him. Peter was jogging to keep up with their long strides as they walked.

"That's the thing! Remus can't come!" Peter told them.

"Why the bloody hell not?" Sirius asked, his hands in his pocket.

"He's meeting _Ziva! _He's meeting her right now!" Peter said to him. Sirius stopped in his tracks, his eyes wide.

"What? Why would he _do_ that?" it wasn't the fact that he met Ziva. It was the fact that Remus was actually talking to someone else other than the three of them. He was normally so shy and reserved that he never talked to anyone other than his friends. He didn't even like talking to teachers.

"Obviously he fancies her if he's speaking to her." James said snidely. Sirius felt a fire heat up in his chest. He looked at James.

"He talks to Lily. I guess he fancies her too." Sirius said nastily. James felt something tug on his stomach for a moment before Peter spoke again.

"Well, he just met her today. Do you think you can fancy someone after one day?" Peter asked. Both boys looked at him as though he was insane.

"Of course!" Sirius exclaimed.

"I did." James muttered. He remembers seeing Lily for the first time. There was some immediate connection that he didn't get when he saw other girls. He didn't even see it when he saw Ziva. That's the reason why he's trying to make this work for so long. He feels it every time he sees her. He wants her to feel the same way about him.

"YOU!" hissed someone from the shadow of the hallway. The three boys turned to see Filtch with a broom, glaring at them with narrowed eyes. His jaw quivered with anger as he stepped towards them with the broom pointing in their direction. "You're all coming with me! You're late for detention! Come along!" Filtch sneered as his jowls shook. The three boys internalized their groans and followed Mr. Filtch to the boy's washrooms to clean up the mess they made

The birds chirped in the boathouse, which was located at the bottom of Hogwarts. Many staircases led down to the boathouses so, when the two of them got down, they were slightly out of breath as Remus got into a boat and helped Ziva in.

"Are you sure this is safe?" Ziva asked Remus nervously looking around the boat as it tottered back and forth in the water.

"Of course it is. The boats are bewitched so they won't tip over unless people purposefully want to tip them over." Remus told her as Ziva sat down in the boat. He sat down right after her and took out the paddle so he could row them to the little island in the middle of the lake. Remus goes there sometimes to study and to concentrate.

Ziva watched as Remus rowed the boat forwards and then looked at the water. "It's awfully black, the water." She commented. Remus nodded as he pulled the paddle through the water.

"Yeah, it's always been like that. Some people say mermaids and a giant squid live down there, but no one has ever seen them," Remus told her. Ziva looked at him with wide eyes but he quickly continued. "Don't worry, they don't disturb students unless they disturb them first. Dumbledore's got it all under control." Remus said easily. Ziva stared nervously at the water again as they got closer to the island.

"How can you put so much faith in one man? I've heard so many people say "Leave it to Dumbledore" and "Dumbledore will take care of it". I don't see how so many people can just blindly trust someone like that." Ziva said. Remus smiled a little.

"Well, you trust me blindly. Who says that I wouldn't feed you to the squid?" Remus asked her. When Ziva went pale, he smiled a bit bigger, "No, I would never do that. But yeah, Dumbledore is just one of those people that you automatically trust. He always seems to have the answer to every problem he faces." Remus said as the boat touched the edge of the island. Remus quickly got out, tied them off and helped Ziva out of the boat.

"He sounds like a great man," Ziva said.

"He really is. I've never met someone like him before. He's compassionate and caring and has people's best interests in mind," Remus told her as they walked to the tree in the middle of the grass. Ziva smiled as she sat down with Remus against the trunk of the Willow tree.

"Sounds like you've got a crush on him," she teased. Remus blushed and laughed a little.

"Nah, I just admire him, that's all." He said. Ziva looked around at the grass.

"It's a nice spot. I wonder why people don't come here more often." Ziva said quietly, looking around at the beautiful lake and the tiny spot of land they sat on.

"Not many people go on the boats, actually. Usually the rejects are the only ones that hang out here." Remus said with a slight bitterness in his tone. Ziva smiled at him.

"Then I guess I'll be right at home." She said. Remus smiled at her, his spirits lifting a little.

"So, am I allowed to ask you questions about the school and/or about you?" Remus inquired. Ziva leaned back against the tree.

"Well, it all depends on what the question is. But go ahead and ask whatever question you want." She told him. Remus sat up a little straighter.

"Hm…is it true that people with dangerous powers are allowed to attend that school?" he asked.

"Yes," Ziva answered truthfully. "Everyone is accepted at our school whether you have a dangerous power or not." she said. Remus smiled at her.

"What's the most fascinating power you've encountered?" he asked. Ziva thought about that for a moment.

"Well, I've met a girl who can morph into anything. She can turn into other people and other objects and animals. She's sort of a secret." Ziva said with a smile. Remus nodded as he smiled.

"That's awesome! I'd love to meet someone like that!" He said excitedly. Ziva raised an eyebrow at him.

"You have." She gestured to herself and Remus backtracked a little.

"Oh, I'm sorry," he apologized. "I-uh-didn't realize that you were…you know,"

"Special?" she smirked at how corny that sounded. Remus nodded as he blushed.

"Yeah, special." He said quietly. "…If you don't mind my asking, what power do you have?" he inquired. Ziva began to fidget, a little uncomfortable for a moment.

"I…uh…" she didn't know how to tell him this, really but she felt comfortable around him. She knew he wouldn't tell anyone if she asked him not to. "Promise you won't tell anyone?"

"I promise," Remus vowed. Ziva took a deep breath and looked at her hands.

"Many years ago, before humanity was fully functional, there was a person that people say were born from the Flames of the Phoenix," Ziva told him.

"Yes, of course. I've read about this legend." Remus said with excitement in his voice.

"Well, the people that were born from the Phoenix were called Drinas, which means "helper of human kind" in an ancient language that no one has discovered yet. Drinas are very much like Phoenixes but instead of being born again like the Phoenix, when one Drina died, another one would be bestowed with the powers of the Drina. The Drinas only had one power which is to feel other people's emotions as though they were their own. Their magical abilities are also unfathomable to behold and they're apparently very smart. There is also only one Drina per generation and once that Drina dies, the fates choose the next Drina in the next generation. Do you understand what I'm saying, Remus?" Ziva asked him hesitantly.

"Well, somewhat, but I don't quite understand how this relates to your power," Remus said quietly. "Wait…does your power mimic the power of the Drinas?" Remus asked her, getting excited again. Ziva shook her head

"No, not exactly," She said awkwardly. "You see, I'm… I _am _a Drina. I'm this generation's Drina." She said quietly. Remus blinked for a moment, not able to understand that information.

"…I'm sorry, what?" Remus asked, confused.

"I'm the Drina." Ziva told him. Remus started to process that information inside his head and his mouth slowly opened and his eyes grew wider, his face transforming into a gawking expression. Ziva backtracked. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have told you that. Here," she took out her wand. "I've been practising my memory charms-,"

"Wait! No, no. I'm fine," Remus said quickly, holding up his hands. When Ziva lowered her wand, Remus looked at her beautiful face in awe. "It's just that I never thought I'd meet a Drina in person before I died…this is incredible." Remus said, completely filled with overcome emotions that Ziva felt as well. Ziva nodded quietly, trying to keep him calm, feeling how unbalanced his emotions were. "Have you...does Professor Dumbledore know?" Remus asked. Ziva nodded.

"Yes. In fact, the principal at my old school contacted Dumbledore because he knew I needed training in magic as well and this school is the highest ranked school for witchcraft that exists." Ziva said. Remus felt almost a little light-headed. His father had read him bedtime stories about the Drinas and how they were the most beautiful of creatures that existed. He'd tell him about their unique power to feel how others felt and how amazing their eyes were. For him, this moment was almost mesmerizing. He felt like his favorite fairy tale was coming true right in front of his eyes.

Ziva felt the light-headedness that Remus felt and she put a hand on his arm, getting dizzy. "Remus, please don't panic, okay? Don't faint. I don't know how I'd get you back to the castle." Ziva said with a slightly hysteric voice. Remus shook his dizziness of, trying to concentrate.

"I won't faint. I'm just in shock at the moment," Remus said lightly.

"I know. I can feel everything you can, remember?" Ziva said. Remus nodded, rubbing his forehead.

"Right, right, sorry." He apologized. Ziva forced a smirk on her lips, trying to distract him from the shock.

"You say sorry a lot, you know that? It's like a constant apology."

"Oh…I'm sorry. I mean- no," Remus tried again. Ziva giggled.

"So, tell me about yourself," Ziva said quickly, attempting to sidetrack. "What's your family like?" She asked him. Remus sat up a little, trying to focus his thoughts on her question.

"Well, we're close. My mum and I spend all of our time together. I was actually kind of nervous to come here this year."

"Why is that?" she asked.

"Because she'd be all alone in our house." Remus answered.

"Well, what about your father?" she asked him. Remus felt that familiar sting in his chest when he was mentioned and Ziva felt it too. She swallowed, wanting to take back the question.

"My father, uh…he died last summer. He was murdered." Remus replied quietly, looking down. Ziva swallowed.

"…I'm so sorry, Remus. That must have been horrible." She said gently with caring eyes. Remus nodded, trying to collect himself.

"It was…still is, actually. My mum took his death really hard. She didn't talk for months. I had to go live with my friend James for a few months while she recovered. I look a lot like him, you see, so it was hard for her to, uh...look at me." Remus explained. Ziva felt empathy for him. She gently squeezed his hand, feeling his pain.

"I know how you feel, Remus," Ziva told him. Remus tried to smile at her.

"Of course you do, you're a Drina." Remus said. Ziva smiled a little.

"No, no, I mean I know how you feel. My dad died two years ago." She explained. Remus's smile faded away again.

"I'm so sorry, Ziva." Remus said. "How…how did he die? If you don't mind my asking." He added. Ziva took a deep breath and fidgeted with her hands for a moment.

"He died in a house fire caused by Ashwinders. We didn't even realize that there was a colony in our house. We figured out later that it was an arsonist." She said. Remus's eyes widened.

"That's horrible!" he exclaimed. Ashwinders were creatures, much like snakes, that supposedly are born when a fire is left to burn for a long period of time. They only live up to an hour, but in that hour they lay many bright red eggs, which, when they hatch, will catch fire and burn quickly so the snakes can escape. They aren't pretty things, either. They have glowing red eyes and slim, grey bodies.

"Yeah, it was." Ziva said quietly, twisting her fingers.

"But why would someone want to burn your house down on purpose?" Remus inquired.

"Well, to witches and wizards like you, I'm a Muggle-Born. Neither of my parents are magical at all. They're both Muggles. So, I guess some Pure Blood fellow decided to try and burn it down. I remember his face clearly in my mind as if it just happened yesterday but I never figured out who it was." Ziva said in an almost frustrated tone. Remus nodded.

"I'm sorry, Ziva. That's terrible. But your dad's in a better place now." Remus told her gently. Ziva looked up at him.

"You really think so?"

"I know so." Remus smiled charmingly and Ziva returned the smile. She sat up a little straighter, trying to lighten up the subject.

"So, you're a Gryffindor," Ziva started. "'There dwell the brave of heart' huh?" Remus chuckled at her.

"And you're a Ravenclaw. 'Wit beyond measure is a man's greatest treasure'?" Remus teased. Ziva smiled at him as she recognized the quote.

"Rowena Ravenclaw said that. How did you know-?"

"I read, remember?" Remus said with a smirk. Ziva smiled.

"You know, I never thought I'd find a Gryffindor who loved to read as much as you do. No offence, but you guys seem all fight and no knowledge." She half-joked, grinning. Remus laughed quietly.

"None taken. Actually, I was shocked when I was put in Gryffindor. I thought that I was going to be sorted into Ravenclaw for sure. I loved to read and learn and I wasn't brave whatsoever. I was actually a scrawny little git who wet himself at any sign of danger." Remus smirked at his old memories of himself. Ziva felt his mood turn into a somewhat reminiscent one and watched him curiously. His feelings became slightly darker as she watched him.

"…What changed?" she asked him softly. Remus pondered that for a moment, not sure how to answer her. He took a deep breath.

"Well…sometimes growing up can change you for both the better and the worse. We just have to decide to act on the part we want to become." Remus said, trying to keep on the positive side of things and away from his little dark 'Secret.' Ziva still felt as though he was hiding something, but she didn't question what as he went on. This time, he was the one who was lightening the conversation. "So, you're Greek, huh? I like your accent. It's beautiful." Remus complimented with a handsome smile. Ziva blushed and quickly moved her long black curls out of the way.

"Thank you, and yes, I'm Greek. Not anything to be proud of, I guess. I just come from Greece."

"But I think it's something to be very proud of! I mean, think about it! The Greeks have the widest selection of Mythology in the world! The Romans wouldn't be here if it weren't for the Greeks and we wouldn't have indoor plumbing if it weren't for you. So, I think that's something to be proud of." Remus grinned as Ziva giggled at him.

"You have a point, but that's not what I meant exactly. You see, I used to have a very big boisterous extended family but they've all moved away and gone on with their lives. So, it's just me and my mum, which is fine. Except, she's kind of…a handful at times." She said awkwardly.

"How?"

"Well, for instance, when I had my first friend come over to my house, my mother decided to explain exactly how she wanted her funeral to be done. She told my friend every little detail, even down to the way she wanted her hands positioned in her coffin," She said as she laughed and Remus joined in. She spoke through giggles. "Sufficient to say that that friend and many others were too emotionally scarred to ever come back to my house."

"Your mother sounds like a wonderful woman." Remus said through chuckles. Ziva smiled and shrugged.

"She's just very open with everyone. Almost everyone in Greece knows about me being a Drina. It's quite exhausting, actually; having prophesiers and seers come to my front door and question me for hours about things as silly as childhood trauma and whether I'd been fully versed in my 'duties' thus far in my life." She said.

"That must be exceedingly annoying." Remus said sympathetically.

"Indeed, it is. I actually hate it. That's why I'm trying to keep this a secret from everybody. I really didn't want to take Divination because Professor Limmer knows about me; in fact, all the teachers do, but I really don't agree with the whole idea of Prophecies and for-telling. I think that the future should be figured out for the person and not told by some old man looking into a crystal ball or into the bottom of a tea cup." Ziva said. Remus smiled at her.

"Spoken like a true Ravenclaw." Remus said cheerfully. Ziva smiled and nudged him playfully.

"So, what about you, Mr. Smarty pants? Do _you _think you should have been sorted into Ravenclaw?" she inquired. Remus thought on that for a few seconds.

"Sometimes I think I should have been. I've never really thought of myself as brave or courageous but the Sorting Hat apparently knows what's in my head even if I haven't realized it yet. I'm sure I was put in Gryffindor for a reason but sometimes I doubt it, you know?" Remus said. Ziva nodded, smiling at him.

"Yeah, I understand. Sometimes I wonder whether I was in the wrong place when I was at my old school. They almost had too many resources for my abilities and it was overwhelming at times. It didn't feel…homey. But Hogwarts, on the other hand, is very welcoming. I've never felt a more welcoming atmosphere in a school, even if some of the people have been a bit…" her voice wandered off as she stared at the lake.

"Judgemental?" Remus finished for her. Ziva nodded at him and smiled.

"Yes, that's exactly it. I don't mean to complain by any means. There have been some people who've been very welcoming and I understand how different I am compared to others. I don't expect to have many friends at this school but that isn't a recommendation for someone like me." Ziva explained when Remus looked at her curiously.

"That sounds like a very lonely life." Remus commented quietly. Ziva swallowed and felt her own emotions leak through in her body. She quickly nodded, pushing them back.

"Yes, but that's the life of a Drina and I'm willing to give up friends for it." Ziva said, even though her voice hinted a strained believability. Remus knew that she didn't want to give up friends-he could see it on her face. He tried to approach it tenderly.

"Well, I know that some of my friends would love to have you as a friend. Maybe you've already met some of them. They're in your first class, I believe." Remus said. Ziva thought back to her first class and remembered that boy who had talked to her after class and those boys who kept talking out of turn. Ziva smirked.

"Your friends wouldn't happen to be those blokes who made a mess of the boy's lavatory, would they?" Ziva inquired. Remus felt his face go red with embarrassment.

"Yes, they are, actually. That's not a very good first impression of them, I apologize." Remus said, trying to salvage his best friend's image. Ziva giggled.

"What do you have to apologize for? You had nothing to do with it." She said.

"Well, sometimes I try to talk them out of doing their pranks but some of the time, I help them. Just some of the time, though." Remus added quickly.

"That's fine, Remus! I love playing pranks! Don't worry about trying to impress me by being a good boy." Ziva said with a sweet smile.

"So, it's true then? Girls like bad boys?" Remus asked curiously.

"Some girls do," she said.

"Do _you?" _

"Er," she hesitated. "I dunno. Why do you ask?"

"Just wondering," Remus lied. Ziva knew that was a lie- she could feel it- but she decided to let it drop for now. "We should probably get back. Dinner is in 20 minutes." Remus told her after he checked his pocket watch, which he kept in his pocket. Remus got to his feet and helped Ziva up too. Ziva gave him a smile as they walked back to the boat.

It didn't take long for Remus to row the boat back and for the pair of them to climb the stairs back up to Hogwarts. As they walked through the stone courtyard and into the corridor outside the Great Hall, Ziva slowed down a little, feeling Remus's hesitation.

"I, uh," Remus started, sort of nervous. "I had a great time talking with you." he told her truthfully. Ziva could feel the honesty coming from him and she smiled.

"I did too. More than you know. Maybe we can do it again sometime." Ziva said as she smiled. Remus smiled brightly back, feeling butterflies start in his stomach. She had such a powerful effect on him, it was almost embarrassing.

"I'd love to," Remus smiled. "Any time you're free, I'd love to get together." He said.

"Sounds great!" Ziva said excitedly. She saw people filing into the Great Hall and looked back at Remus. "Well, I'll, uh, see you later then." She said quietly. Remus blushed shyly and smiled.

"See you later." He bid her farewell and she walked into the Great Hall. Remus decided he wasn't very hungry so he wondered upstairs to the common room, which was empty. He went up to the dorm room and quickly closed the door behind him. He went over to his bed and opened the drawer of his bedside table. He took out a special cream his mum gave him to make his scars fade faster. He took off his Hogwarts sweater, his white shirt and tie and he stood in front of the mirror. He took the lid of and put some of the cream on his hands. He then rubbed it on the long scars on his tiny chest, which were aggravated and red from wearing his uniform all day. He refused to keep bandages on the cuts because they hurt more than exposing them to the air. There was an especially nasty cut on his stomach and when he applied the cream to that cut, he hissed in pain. It stung like crazy. Remus looked up at himself in the mirror and focused on his reflection for a moment. He wasn't particularly muscular. He was more tall and lanky with long limbs. He really didn't like the way he looked. He was quite self-conscious of both his body and his scars, which were all over his face and slim form. He couldn't count the amount of scars he had. It seemed so hopeless now that all he could do was block out the stares he got in the halls and continue applying this cream. It was the only thing that could make his scars fade even a little, even though werewolf scratches never fade completely.

Once he was finished putting the cream on all of his scars, including the ones on his face, he went over to his bedside again, putting the cream back, and then he took out his calendar, which had a red 'X' on the days that he'd go through the 'change.' He didn't put it up. He just checked it every once in a while to make sure that he knew when the next full moon was and the next full moon was tomorrow. Remus knew this- he could feel it. Usually, when it came close to a full moon, he'd start to feel pain in his scars. Remus knew that tomorrow would be worse, though. The day of the change was always the most painful for him. This whole week, his scars had been hurting more and more with each day as the full moon got closer. Today, Remus only felt mere stabs of pain every once in a while but he knew that as soon as he woke up tomorrow, they'd be hurting all day.

Remus heard Sirius, James and Peter coming up the stairs, laughing about something Filtch must have done. Remus shoved the calendar and the cream in his bedside table, shut the drawer and turned around just as they came in the room. James was the first to see him as Remus buttoned up his white shirt quickly.

"Hey Remus! Heard you were with Miss. Freaky pants, huh? How was she? Did you get some?" James winked as Peter laughed and Sirius smirked. Remus's ears went red as he sat on his bed.

"No, of course not. I just met her." Remus muttered.

"So?" James said, jumping onto his own bed with a grin on his face. Sirius pulled up a chair and he sat in it, putting his feet up on the bedside table, lounging handsomely. Peter sat at the end of Remus's bed, cross-legged.

"So?" Remus said, leaning back against the bedframe.

"Oh, c'mon, Remus, I saw you today," Peter said with a grin on his face. "You were so eager to get to her!"

"I was not! I just offered to help her around the castle, that's all." Remus lied.

"Oh, that was very helpful, Remus," Sirius teased. "Helping the freak around the castle! Maybe you'll even get House points for doing charity!" Obviously, Sirius wasn't going to let them see how much he fancied Ziva already because they'd tear the micky out of her if they found out. Remus, however, wasn't buying it and wasn't amused whatsoever.

"She's not a freak! And I wasn't giving charity! She's just a girl that didn't know her way around the castle so I helped her. That's it." Remus tried to clarify. James smirked.

"Whatever, Remus," James said, laying back against his pillows, putting his hands behind his head. He was thinking about seeing Remus looking at Ziva earlier that day. "I just know that you look at Ziva the same way I look at Evans." James said, his mind now only on Lily.

"How?" Remus asked hesitantly. James grinned and looked at him.

"Like a fresh slab of meat that has huge tits and a great ass." James said, grinning. Remus felt himself go even redder.

"I do not! I'd never think of her like that!" Remus exclaimed. Sirius smirked at him.

"Anyone would, Remus. She's a catch. I'd so do her any day." Sirius said, crossing his arms with a grin on his face, just imagining it. Remus glared at him but said nothing.

"Same." Peter said quietly, laying back, thinking about it eagerly. James scoffed.

"Alright, you guys can think about banging the freak and I'll think about banging Evans." James said as he closed his eyes.

"Is that all you guys think about? Sex?" Remus asked them with a slight harshness to his voice. All three boys looked at him.

"Yes!" all three boys said at the same time. "Don't you?" Peter asked. Remus went to say something but he was interrupted by James.

"Oh no, not wittle innocent Remus! He's never been laid in his entire life!" James teased as Peter laughed and Sirius smirked.

"Nor do I want to right now," Remus told them. "Why would I waste sex on people that I have no interest in?" he asked. "And c'mon, how many girls have you laid, James?" Remus added, skepticism in his features. James smirked.

"Oh, tons! I'm an absolute stud!" James lied. He really hadn't had sex ever. None of them had.

"How many?" Peter asked him excitedly. James shrugged.

"I couldn't count." James said, smirking arrogantly. Remus rolled his eyes.

"I wonder how many STD's you have, then." Remus muttered. James looked over at him, his eyebrows pulling together.

"STD's? Is that some sort of short-form for condoms or something?" James asked stupidly. Remus stared at him incredulously.

"Please tell me you're kidding me. Have you ever taken a health class?" Remus asked him, his eyes wide.

"Nah, I fell asleep during that class. It was boring." James said, staring at the ceiling. Remus was at a loss for words. He just sat back against his bedframe as Sirius and Peter giggled away at how gobsmacked Remus looked.

"Well, I'm going to bed. I don't know about you all. See you tomorrow." Remus said quickly, getting under the covers.

"Aw, come one, Remus! We were going to go find Filtch's cat and shave it! Don't you want to come?" Sirius said.

"No, thanks. I don't feel like it tonight." Remus said quietly, facing away from them.

"C'mon, Remus! Aren't you tired of being the goody-goody?" James asked, getting up. Remus clenched his teeth, his fists tightening around his blankets.

"Aren't you tired of scrubbing bathrooms in detention?" Remus muttered but the three of them didn't hear.

"Whatever, Remus! Let's go guys!" Sirius said.

"See you later, Remus." Peter said, waving goodbye. The three of them walked out and closed the door. Remus listened to them walk away and heard James say something he wasn't supposed to hear.

"Geez, I sometimes wonder whether it's his time of the month." He said as they walked away. Remus laid in his bed and thought about how incredibly right James was about that innocent statement.


	6. Chapter 5

Chapter five: Curious…

_"Do it, Fenrir, I dare you," snarled Remus's father, Charles who had his wand branched out at him. Charles Lupin and Fenrir Greyback stood in the front of Charles's house at 11:00 at night on a summer's evening. It was dark out so it was hard to see much of anything at all. "I have the upper hand. Why don't you leave me and my family alone and we'll put this behind us." he said quietly. A grinning Fenrir looked at him and, without warning, he wiped out his wand._

_ "Expelliermus!" he shouted. Charles's wand was blasted away from his hand and after soaring through the air for a moment, he heard it clatter on the ground behind him. Charles turned back to Fenrir, his hands up, showing he'd surrendered. Fenrir grinned, showing his sharp, yellow teeth. "Charles," Fenrir growled. "Bring out your son," he ordered him. Charles stood there in front of his house, looking determined. _

_ "No. I refuse to bring my family farther into this than I already have." Charles said strongly. Fenrir grabbed him by the collar, digging the tip of his wand into Charles's jugular. Charles swallowed against it, his eyes staring into Fenrir's. "Get him, Charles. This has more to do with the boy than with you. Call him." Fenrir said, going up to the door, still dragging Charles behind him and he opened the door and shoved Charles's face into the house, still holding onto the collar of his shirt. Charles stared at the inside of his house for a moment before he opened his mouth, his hands shaking, and called for his son._

_ "Remus! R-Remus, could you come down here for a moment, son?" Charles said up the stairs. A few moments later, Charles heard footsteps coming down the stairs from Remus's bedroom and Fenrir pulled him back outside. _

_ "Dad? Where are you?" a thirteen year old Remus Lupin appeared at the bottom of the stairs and quickly looked out the open door. Fenrir dug the tip of his wand into Charles's back and he fidgeted._

_ "Out here, son. Come out here." Charles said quickly. Remus obeyed and stepped outside and then saw Fenrir and his father standing there. Remus's eyes widened and he made a grab for his wand._

_ "Ah, ah, ah," Fenrir's hand flashed up to point his wand at Remus, who froze immediately. "We'll have none of that. Put your wand down, shut the front door and come towards us. Nice and slowly…" Fenrir dictated. Remus felt his chest tighten in fear. With shaking hands, Remus shut the door, removed his wand from his pocket and put it on the ground. He took a few steps towards Fenrir and his father, staring only at Fenrir, who grinned at him with glistening teeth. "Wow, Remus, you've grown up. I remember when you were just a knee-high little bastard." Fenrir said as he smiled at Remus, who just stared at Fenrir with angry eyes._

_ "Was this before you turned me into a monster, or after?" Remus asked through gritted teeth. Fenrir laughed loudly._

_ "A monster, huh? I never thought of myself as such a creature."_

_ "Well, I do." Remus said quietly, his jaw tight. Fenrir chuckled a little bit more before continuing._

_ "So, what does Hogwarts teach you? Do you still have to take Transfiguration with Professor McWrinkles?" Fenrir asked him. After receiving a 'go ahead' nod from his father, Remus answered him._

_ "Yes, but I find Transfiguration fascinating. Professor McGonagall's my favorite teacher." Remus said to him, his eyes staring into Fenrir's._

_ "Ha! She was a twit. I can't believe she's survived this long to torment you young'uns." Fenrir said in an almost fond voice. Remus's eyes narrowed._

_ "What do you want from us, Fenrir?" Remus inquired. "You've settled the debt with my father. What else could you possibly want?" he asked. Fenrir grinned at him, still holding onto Charles with his strong hand, his wand pointing at his head._

_ "Well, I wanted to teach you a lesson, boy. When a male werewolf bites a male human and makes him a werewolf, a bond is created between the two of them that has a likeness to a father-son bond." Fenrir explained in a matter-of-fact voice. Remus glared at him._

_ "We have no such bond, Fenrir." Remus snarled at him. Fenrir looked back at the boy with wild eyes._

_ "Well, I say we do, and because I have the wand __and __your father, I say what we are and what we aren't! So, shut up and listen!" Fenrir growled. Remus immediately shut his mouth, feeling anxiety build up inside him. When he was ready, he continued. "You see, when two werewolves have this father-son bond, the father feels the need to guide the young werewolf in different lessons of life and show him how to survive. Since I have no such privilege as to having you for long periods of time, I'll make this quick," Fenrir said. "Are you scared of death, Remus?" he asked. Remus recoiled a little, his eyes shocked._

_ "…I-uh…I don't know." Remus said. Fenrir nodded._

_ "Good. You shouldn't yet. But, let's say, for humor's sake, that you had to kill someone. How would you do it?" Fenrir asked. Remus blinked for a moment, his stomach churning in knots._

_ "I would…I would make it as quick as possible." Remus said._

_ "No, Remus, you didn't answer the question. I asked __how __you would kill the person. How would you do it? What tools would you use to kill the person?" Fenrir asked. Remus swallowed and looked at his dad, who seemed relatively calm but still had fear in his eyes._

_ "I'd use…I'd use the Killing Curse." Remus told him. Fenrir looked disappointed._

_ "Of course you would. But, let's say, for instance, that you had an enemy that you didn't want to die 'as quick as possible.'" Fenrir looked at Charles and Remus felt himself shiver a little at how scared his father now looked. Fenrir looked back at him. "What would you use then?"_

_ "…The Killing Curse." Remus said. Fenrir exhaled impatiently and shoved Charles away, pointing his wand at Remus._

_ "Really? Have your animal instincts taught you nothing, boy?" Fenrir asked him exasperatedly. _

_ "I'm not like you," Remus said to him. "I would never kill someone while in my wolf form." Remus snarled angrily at him. Fenrir smirked._

_ "It's only a matter of time, boy," Fenrir told him as he walked a little closer, shaking his head. "How long do you think that little magic stick is gunna last you?" Fenrir gestured to Remus's wand, which laid on the ground by the door. Remus glanced back. "Soon, Remus, you're going to realize that many people don't deserve to die 'as quickly as possible.' Some people-," Fenrir looked over at Charles, who stared at him cautiously. "-deserve to die slowly," Fenrir looked back at Remus. "painfully. That's where being a werewolf comes in handy, my boy. You don't need a wand to do the deed. You just need a full moon," Fenrir grinned. Remus glared at him. "I'm going to give you a little demonstration, Remus. Just for fun. I want to see how you react to it." Fenrir said, pacing back and forth like a hungry animal. He turned his yellow eyes onto Charles, whose eyes widened when he realized what was happening. Fenrir let a low growl escape his clenched teeth as he lined up to Charles and then, before Remus could realize what he was about to do, Fenrir leapt at Remus's father and sunk his sharp teeth into the crook of his neck. A scream sounded in the all but dead-silent street and suddenly, Charles was on the ground, Fenrir over top of him. Remus was rooted on the spot by shock as he listened to the tearing of flesh and the spurt of blood. Remus's heart beat fast as he watched Fenrir shred his father's neck until it was nothing but blood and torn flesh. After just a few milliseconds, Fenrir stood up, his mouth glistening with blood, his eyes shining in the moonlight. Remus watched in horror as Fenrir stowed his wand in his pocket, wiping the blood off his face with the back of his hand, and kicked his father's body as he gasped for air, clutching his throat, shaking on the ground. Fenrir looked back at Remus and smiled evilly. "See? Perfect example. Maybe your father has finally learned what it means to mess with someone like me," Fenrir grinned again. Remus finally remembered how to move his legs and he ran over to his father's trembling body and tried to mop up the blood. _

_ "No, dad. No, please." Remus whispered in agony, his eyes staring through the darkness at his father's mangled throat. Fenrir just smirked at him._

_ "I hope you learned a valuable lesson too, boy; never underestimate your power and don't use magic to do what really should be done with vengeance," Fenrir said quietly. Remus snapped his head back to look at him, his eyes wild. Fenrir gave him one last smile. "Good luck, boy. I'll see you again soon." Fenrir told him and with that, Fenrir Apperated away with a sharp cracking sound. _

_ Charles stared up at his son, his hands clutching at his shirt, all covered in blood. He knew this was it. He was dying. When Remus looked back at him, his eyes were filled with anger and pain. Remus knew he was dying too._

_ "Mum! Mum, come out here! MUM!" Remus yelled at the top of his lungs, trying to put pressure on the several bite and tear marks on Charles's throat. He refused to believe that he was dying. He couldn't be dying._

_ "Remus," Charles rasped, his voice a mere whisper, his head spinning. Remus looked back at his father lying on the ground with determined eyes._

_ "I'm going to fix this, dad. I'm going to fix this, don't worry." Remus told him with a strong voice, ripping a piece of his shirt to put over his wounds. Charles shook his head painfully._

_ "Remus, it's no use," Charles whispered, trying desperately to get Remus to listen to him but he refused._

_ "No, you're going to be fine, dad. Just wait. Hold on." Remus demanded as his hands fumbled to hold the piece of cloth against the blood, which ran heavily down his fingers. Finally, Charles grabbed his hands and pulled them off his neck, forcing him to look into his eyes. When Charles's eyes met Remus's, he stared deeply, trying to make him understand. _

_ "It's over, Remus. You can't fix it. It's impossible. Now, please listen to me," Charles mumbled. He gripped onto his hands tighter. "This wasn't your fault, do you hear me? T-This wasn't your fault. It was my fault. Don't blame yourself for this. Do you understand me?" Charles asked. Remus felt tears form in his eyes as he stared at his dad's pale face. "Do you understand me, Remus?!" Charles shook him weakly. Remus nodded quickly, tears pouring down his face. "Promise me you'll take care of mum, alright? Now that she's alone, she'll need your help."_

_ "Dad, please-," Remus's voice cracked._

_ "P-promise me, son." Charles said forcefully. Remus nodded again, trying to hold in his sobs._

_ "I promise." Remus vowed. Charles seemed more at peace now and he let Remus cradle his head as he looked up at his son's young face. A weak smile formed on Charles's lips. This was it._

_ "Be strong, Remus..." the words trailed off on Charles's lips and his smile faded into a relaxed expression, his eyes staring blankly up at his son as the life drained his body._

_ Remus didn't feel pain, at first. He sat there with his father's dead body, hoping for him to say one more thing to him. Once it started to sink in, Remus felt the tears choke him and he started to shake his father's limp body gently. "Dad," Remus mumbled, in total denial. "Dad, c'mon. Please, d-don't do this," Remus pleaded. His body just shook unresponsively. "P-please! Please don't! Wake up! Wake up!"_

_ That's when his mum came running out of the house, looking around wildly. Her eyes found her son and her dead husband and her stomach fell into the ground. She ran over to them and as she got closer, she saw the dreadful sight: her husband's still body, his eyes wide open and blood all over his face, neck and cloths. "No, Charles," Remus's mother muttered as she got closer. She knelt beside him, already feeling tears come to her eyes. "Charles! No!" she took her husband's dead face in her hands and tried to shake him awake too. "Please, no! Oh God, please, no!" She screeched in the darkness of the night as Remus sobbed into his father's chest, feeling the most explicit pain he'd ever felt in his entire life._

"No, please, no,"

"Remus, wake up. C'mon, mate."

"No, please, stop!"

"Snap out of it!"

"My fault…my fault-,"

"_Remus!"_

A voice broke into Remus's mind, making him jolt out of sleep, his eyes snapping open. He saw light at first and then he saw two faces blur into his vision- Sirius and Peter were leaning over Remus, their faces a little shocked. Remus felt sweat pouring down his face and neck which drenched into his shirt, which clung to his body. He was breathing rather quickly as though he'd just ran a very long race and he could feel his heart galloping in his chest. Remus took a few deep breaths as the boys exchanged looks.

"You alright, mate?" Sirius asked, his tone slightly worried. Remus nodded, swallowing as he listened to Fenrir's laughter in his head.

"Yeah. Bad dream." Remus said quietly, sitting up against his bed.

"What about?" Peter asked. Remus shrugged, looking down at his bed sheets.

"Can't remember," he lied blankly. "What time is it?"

"Seven thirty. Breakfast is about to start," said Sirius, walking away from Remus, seeing he was alright. He was already changed and so was Peter and James, who was fixing his hair in the mirror. Remus swallowed again and wiped the sweat off his forehead. Peter didn't look convinced that he as alright but he walked away too, grabbing his books. Remus got out of bed and got a shower, got dressed and made himself look presentable. By the time the four of them got down to the Great Hall for breakfast, he felt the pain start in his scars again. Remus sat beside Peter while James and Sirius sat across from them, chatting on about Quidditch. As usual, while he ate, James kept sneaking looks up the Gryffindor table and catching Lily's eye. As soon as they made eye contact, Lily looked away and chatted with her friends again. James felt that spot inside his chest tighten up a little when he looked at her but he continued eating and talking to Sirius.

Remus had lost his appetite before he even got one. He stared at his eggs and toast with tired eyes and pushed his plate away, reaching a shaking hand to take a swig of his pumpkin juice. He felt sick and achy and he knew it was going to be a long day. He peaked over at the Ravenclaw table without thinking and saw Ziva sitting at the edge of the table, all by herself, politely nibbling on her toast. He caught himself staring too long and, feeling his eyes on her, Ziva looked up and saw Remus. Their eye contact, unlike James and Lily's, was longer. Ziva could feel, even from here, that he was in pain and that he was tired, but she smiled at him and gave a tiny wave. Remus managed a small smile as well and waved subtly back at her before Ziva turned her attention back to her breakfast. But even when Remus wasn't looking, Ziva glanced back at Remus, trying to figure out why he was in pain.

They finished breakfast and everyone made their way to their first period classes. Ziva sat by herself in the Transfiguration classroom while people grabbed seats, avoiding sitting beside her altogether. She felt the hesitation and curiosity in the air when the people looked at her and then grabbed their seats. When Ziva faced the front, she felt three different personalities enter the room, which she immediately categorized. As usual, James Potter was heard before he was seen, talking loudly about his father's Christmas vacation plans. Sirius followed in his wake and Peter hobbled along beside them. Ziva focused on all three of their feeling at that present time and tried to block out James's annoying voice but despite all her efforts, she couldn't. And when James saw Ziva sitting by herself, he smirked and judged Sirius. Ziva felt Sirius's mood change immediately from joking to nervous. Ziva fidgeted uncomfortably as she felt their stares at the back of her head.

"Hey, you," said James from behind Ziva. Ziva swallowed and snuck a look behind her. James was staring directly at her and Sirius was staring pointedly at his hands. Peter was also looking at her. "Yeah, you. What's your name again?" James asked Ziva from across the classroom. Ziva hesitated.

"Ziva," she said timidly. James grinned.

"Hey Ziva, I'm James Potter." James introduced himself. Ziva felt the arrogance coming from James. It angered her a little.

"I know who you are." Ziva told him. James looked very pleased as he leaned back against his chair.

"You do, do you? Well, I'm liking this girl already," James said. Half the Gryffindor's laughed, Peter being the loudest. James chuckled. "So, Ziva. Where you from?"

"I think you know the answer to that question." Ziva said, now looking away.

"Well, I've only heard rumors," James told her. The Ravenclaws ignored James but kept glancing at Ziva's face.

"What rumors would those be?" Ziva asked.

"That you're from that school for Freaks in some weird country." James said. Ziva felt a pang of frustration hit her body. She refused to answer for a moment but James kept trying. "Are the rumors true?"

"It's a school for the Gifted, if you must know. And it's in Greece, which is hardly 'some weird country.'" Ziva said quietly.

"Well, I apologize, your Majesty. Why did you go to a school for the Gifted?" James inquired. Ziva blinked at this boy's stupidity.

"…Why do you think?" she asked.

"Because you're…gifted?" James asked. Ziva felt everyone's eyes on her and she shrunk down a little inside. Thankfully, Professor McGonagall came striding into the room and confronted James as though she'd heard the entire thing.

"Really, Mr. Potter, leave Miss Ziva alone. You wouldn't want her prying on your private life, would you?" McGonagall said as she strode past him, looking stern, as usual. James leaned back, crossing his arms smugly.

"I don't have a private life, Professor." He told her obnoxiously. McGonagall peered over her square glasses at him.

"Oh, I'm sure many people would disagree with that statement. Now," McGonagall went on. "Today I'd like to talk about Transfiguration of edible material. Please take out your Transfiguration textbooks and turn to page 23." She said crisply.

After class when everyone was getting ready to leave, Sirius went over to Ziva again. He leaned against her desk as she gathered her books.

"Hey," Sirius started. "Sorry about James. He's too nosy for his own good sometimes, you know?" he said. Ziva looked up at him with her blue eyes, slightly confused as to why he was talking to her again, but after a moment, she began to feel his slightly nervous, yet overpowering charm coming from his body. She felt her emotions get lost again inside her body as it does every time she's talking to someone like Sirius.

"Yes, I'm afraid I know it all too well, Mr. Black," Ziva said quietly as she scooped her books into her book bag and shut the latch. "If you'll excuse me." she said quickly before turning and walking away. But Sirius didn't give up-he followed her.

"C'mon Ziva, can we just talk?" Sirius asked.

"Well, I don't know. Something about this conversation we're having is giving me déjà vu from yesterday." Ziva said pointedly. Sirius kept up with her quick strides easily, his hands in his pockets.

"We tried to have it yesterday and you ended it, remember?" Sirius reminded her.

"No, I don't believe I do, Mr. Black." Ziva said stiffly, trying to get in a better mood, but his emotions were affecting her too greatly, it was hard to concentrate on anything.

"Hey, Mr. Black was my father." Sirius said.

"And what happened to him?" she asked crisply.

"…He died." Sirius told her quietly. Ziva paused, feeling a pang of pain hit her chest as pain flickered across Sirius's face. She swallowed and looked over at him hesitantly.

"I-I'm sorry-,"

"I'd rather you call me Sirius, Ziva. I don't want to hear the name 'Mr. Black' for quite a while." Sirius said, being upfront. Ziva didn't answer for a moment, trying to awkwardly untangle herself from this emotional train wreck she was on.

"…If you insist, Sirius." She said quietly. Sirius gave her a smile as he walked.

"There ya go. So, moving on," he said quickly, wanting to get his father's death out of his mind. "Are you enjoying Hogwarts?"

"Well, Sirius, to be perfectly honest, I've only been here for three days, so I can't exactly give you a liable answer at the present time." Ziva said. Sirius smirked at how she talked- it was so calculated.

"Then I guess we'll just have to keep having these conversations until I find out, won't we?" Sirius said with a handsome smile on his face. Ziva pursed her lips a little.

"Perhaps." She said as they rounded the corner on their way to Divination.

"Perhaps, indeed." Sirius peered into the Divination classroom and saw Remus sitting there, looking pale as usual, and very tired. Ziva saw him staring at Remus and felt his emotions change into something different: worry.

"Are you good friends with Remus?" Ziva asked him quietly. Sirius looked back at her, a bit confused.

"Yes, I am. Why?"

"Oh, I was just curious. He seemed a little off this morning and I was wondering whether you knew what was going on." Ziva asked. Sirius felt another emotion boil in the pit of his stomach- anger and jealousy.

"Why do you care?" Sirius asked, a little harsher than needed. Ziva was taken aback.

"W-Well, I'm just concerned-,"

"Well, don't be," Sirius snapped. Ziva flinched away from him and Sirius continued. "If you're that worried about him, ask him what's wrong yourself." The second bell rang and Sirius gave her one last look before he strode off, his hands clenched into fists deep in his pockets. Sirius walked until the corridor was empty of students. He then paused and looked down at his chest. He pulled out the locket his mother had given him to protect from around his neck and rubbed his chest, his skin feeling clammy and hot from the locket. He always felt angrier when he had this thing on him but he had no choice but to wear it. He had to take care of it even if it meant being a little more testy than usual. That's how it always was for Sirius, really. When he was ready, Sirius stowed the locket beneath the front of his robes again and continued on to his next class.

When Ziva stepped into the class, it was as though someone had stabbed her in the forehead, the neck, the torso and her arms. She winced in pain and soon realized Remus sitting there in the Divination classroom, slouched against a table, obviously fatigued and incredibly drowsy and pale as a ghost, which made his scars look more distinctive on his handsome, but worn face. His eyes were half open and he seemed to be half in sleep when Ziva sat down. She focused on the teacher as Mr. Limmer entered the room, but it was extremely difficult to concentrate with the amount of pain coming from Remus's body and hitting Ziva.

"Class, I would like you to find a person that will serve as your partner for the entire term. You will, of course, be required to spend a considerable amount of time with this person, so choose wisely as you will not get to request another one." Mr. Limmer told everyone. There was a scraping of chairs as people got up out of their desks and found partners, chatting excitedly to their friends. Ziva, of course, was left alone again. Everyone that passed her seemed to glance at her and then go the other way, giving off the sign that they didn't want to be her partner. Ziva felt an uneasy feeling climb all over her skin as she sat there awkwardly. She looked over and saw Remus sitting all by himself as well. The few Gryffindors that were in this class had already chosen partners, leaving Remus alone like Ziva. He looked up warily as everyone congregated away from him, giving him looks as they went. His face looked so heartbreaking- it was so sad. He felt the same sting of under-appreciation that Ziva was feeling. Finally, Ziva traveled over and sat beside Remus. When she pulled the chair out and sat down, the class went oddly quiet but returned back to normal when Ziva stared them all down. Remus lifted his head tiredly and looked at her. Ziva felt his emotions change from tired to forcing himself to be awake. Ziva quickly noticed the change and gave him a frightened, hesitant look.

"Hi," she said. "Do you want to be my partner?" she asked quietly so the others wouldn't hear. Remus gave her a tired smile.

"I would love to, but I apologize in advance- I'm not going to be a very good partner today. I'm a little tired." Remus told her. Ziva continued to sit beside him anyway as the class stared at the two of them.

"That's absolutely fine," Ziva told him kindly. "We'll be a fantastic team whether you're tired or not."

"You don't mind?" Remus asked her.

"Of course not," Ziva smiled. "Everyone gets tired." She said. Remus gave her a smile of appreciation.

"Thank you." Remus said gratefully. Ziva didn't have time to ask him what he was thanking her for because Mr. Limmer started speaking again.

"Class, please turn to page 12 in your books. We'll be looking at the Lunar cycle today." He said, sitting down at his table. He peered over his glasses at Remus as the rest of the class took out their books. Remus avoided eye contact as he flipped to the page and saw a Lunar Chart in the textbook. He swallowed and quickly stared at his shoes, trying to avoid looking at the book and at the teacher. Mr. Limmer began teaching his lesson, which wasn't really very long. He talked about the alignment of the stars and how the moon changes every night because it's always moving and the sun is hitting it in a certain spot and that's why the moon changes. After about forty minutes of talking, Mr. Limmer paused. "Now, class, for homework, which I want completed for tomorrow, I'd like you to take a piece of parchment, sketch the Moon Cycle and label the different moons. Also, I would like you to do a sketch of the solar system and label each of the planets. I want the assignment on my desk by tomorrow morning, understood?" there was silence so he continued. "Alright, you may start now if you'd like." He told them. Ziva took out a piece of parchment and a quill and looked at the moons. She looked at Remus, who was staring at his textbook quietly, his eyelids drooping.

"Are you okay, Remus?" Ziva inquired quietly. Remus looked over at her and nodded.

"Yeah, just tired. I had a rough night last night." He explained. Ziva wanted to understand further without pushing his limits.

"Why was it rough? Couldn't sleep?" she asked. Remus shook his head.

"No- I had a nightmare." Remus told her quietly. Ziva looked at his worn face.

"Oh, I see. What about?" She asked. Memories of the dream leaked into Remus's mind and he flinched away from them.

"My father." Was all he said. Ziva felt the pain coming from Remus and decided to let it rest.

"Oh…well, should we start this lunar chart now or do you want to work on it tonight? We can go to that island and work until dinner, if you'd like." Ziva said. Remus nodded.

"Yeah, I think we should do it later. I know quite a bit on Lunar charts, so it should be a breeze. The bell is going to ring in three minutes." Remus told her. Ziva nodded.

"Okay. So, I'll meet you outside my last class again?" Ziva asked.

"Yeah, that'd be best. We'll go back to the island. It's quiet there." Remus said, just imagining how peaceful it was, just listening to the water rippling against the shore. "But I can't work very late tonight. I have, uh, a special class with Professor McGonagall after dinner." He said. Ziva sensed deception from him, which was odd. She hadn't felt that from him yet and it didn't seem like something he'd lie about. But Ziva didn't question it- she simply nodded.

"Alright, that's fine," she gave him a caring smile. Then, the bell rang. Everyone stood, including Ziva and Remus took his time getting up. Ziva looked at how sluggish Remus was. "Would you like me to walk you to your class? Or maybe the Hospital Wing to see Madame Francis? You look really pale." Without thinking, Ziva touched Remus's waxy cheek and he froze, going all warm and fuzzy inside. Ziva felt it too, but not from Remus- it was her own body going warm and fuzzy. She quickly pulled her hand back as Remus looked in her blue eyes.

"I-uh, I can't go to the Hospital Wing. I couldn't miss a day of school. I'll be alright, though. I'd love to take you to your class, though." He said quickly. Ziva gave him a warm smile and nodded as he grabbed his books. The two of them made their way outside and Ziva noticed that Remus was swaying a little as he walked. So, just in case, she wound an arm through his without a word, hoping to steady him so he could walk better. Little did the two of them know that Peter was standing just around the corridor, staring at them as they walked by. He watched Ziva as she went, feeling jealousy build up inside him. He was infatuated with Ziva, even more so than Remus or Sirius. His interest in Ziva was much more intense and almost a little too much sometimes. Peter followed Ziva everywhere without her knowing it. He hadn't gotten the nerve up to talk to her though. Both Sirius and Remus had gotten there before him. He was disappointed in himself for not trying to speak to her- she seemed perfectly friendly but Peter was still slightly frightened that she might reject him. So, instead of talking to her, Peter watched her every move carefully. Every time he saw her, it was as though somebody lit fireworks in his mind. He was obsessed with her. Peter had it in his mind that someday they would date and she'd be his girlfriend and that no one would get in the way. Peter watched as Remus and Ziva walked away and he quickly slunk away, plots beginning in his cunning little mind.

Lily Evans walked out towards the courtyards, carrying her Herbology textbook, holding a quill in between her teeth as she searched for her Ink bottle in the bottom of her bag as she made her way towards the Greenhouses. She could hear people chatting around her as she walked, listening to their conversations as she went. When she found the ink bottle, she put the quill in her bag as she walked closer to her next class. She stared out over the green grass and saw a few people outside the Herbology classrooms. She was about to walk through the doors but she heard a voice she recognized from over behind the greenhouses. Lily's red eyebrows fluttered with confusion as she peeked around the corner and saw three girls from Slytherin following a girl from Ravenclaw behind the Greenhouses. The girl from Ravenclaw looked quite upset and was shying away from them. As Lily walked towards the group, she could hear the conversation better.

"-Does it feel to be amongst normal people?" asked a Slytherin girl that Lily immediately recognized as Pepper Parkinson. "Do you feel comfortable around us?"

"Speak for yourself, Peppy," said the second Slytherin, Bellatrix as she smirked. "I'm not normal. Maybe we'll get along then, freak." Bellatrix said, poking her wand against the Ravenclaw's shoulder annoyingly. The girl cowered away, her eyes on the ground.

"Or not." said the third Slytherin, Narsissa. Lily's stomach began to bubble with hatred. She had a particular hatred for Narsissa, who had told Lily exactly what she thought of her when she was in her first year at Hogwarts. But after Lily threatened to tell McGonagall about Narsissa and Lucius Malfoy hexing a First Year last year, Narsissa's been afraid of her ever since. Lily listened closer to the conversation, now only meters away.

"Are you mentally handicapped, freak?" Narsissa asked the Ravenclaw girl. "I mean, I don't understand why you're in Ravenclaw if you aren't smart. It doesn't make any sense."

"She's smart, though! I copy her notes all the time in Divination!" Exclaimed Pepper.

"So, you aren't stupid," Narsissa said quietly, who now cornered the Ravenclaw girl. She put her hand on her hip, staring at her. "So why were you at a school for loons?" before Ziva could answer, Bellatrix piped up again.

"Maybe she's one of those Dark Wizard killers or something and she can't tell anyone about it." she said. Pepper giggled.

"Or maybe she went there to learn how to defend against Dark Wizards! Maybe she's here to make sure we don't become crazy psycho-killers!" Pepper squealed annoyingly. Narsissa laughed nastily, her hand on her hip.

"Oh please, she's not that special. She's probably just one of Dumbledore's pets," Narsissa sneered. Ziva flinched at that analogy but kept quiet. "What's the matter, Mudblood? Scared of a little word-play?" before Ziva could answer, a voice sounded from behind Narsissa. "Or are you just scared of me?"

"Don't give yourself so much credit, Narsissa." Said Lily from behind her. Narsissa whipped around and saw the redheaded girl standing behind her. Their eyes met and Narsissa's face went from jeering, to cold and hard and back to jeering once again.

"Ah, Evans, how absolutely lovely to see you again, my dear," Narsissa said as Bellatrix and Pepper sniggered behind her, getting ready to be entertained, forgetting all about Ziva. "Come to bask in the glory of three Slytherins?" she asked with a sly smirk. Lily glared at her, crossing her arms.

"Glory? Well, I didn't know I was in the presence of Royalty. I'll make sure to curtsy next time I see you."

"Like you should, Evans, like you should." Sneered Bellatrix. Lily raised a red eyebrow at her.

"What are you doing here, Evans?" Narsissa asked her impatiently, wanting to get back to tormenting Ziva, who stayed silent, terrified.

"I heard you three were picking on this girl. I came to tell you to get lost." Lily said easily. The three girls burst out laughing, Bellatrix loudest of all.

"Get lost? Is that the best you can do, Evans?"

"Fine, let's see," Lily said thoughtfully. "Either you leave her alone, or you'll have so many jinxes sent at your face, you won't know which one hit you."

The laughter relapsed.

"Oh really? You gunna get your boyfriend Potter to come and jinx us, Evans?" Narsissa asked her snidely.

"No, I can do that myself." Lily said, pulling out her wand. The three girls jumped and immediately scurried backwards, leaning away from her wand. Everyone knew that Lily was one of the best spell-casters in their year, and they knew first-hand how well she could cast jinxes.

Narsissa's black eyes darted from Lily's wand to Ziva and back again.

"Well, thanks to you, _Mudblood_," she spat the word at Lily. "We'll be talking a lot more to Miss Freak over here-," She gestured to Ziva, who looked even more terrified now that a wand had been taken out. Narsissa looked at Lily's face filled with fury and smiled in a silky sweet way. "Have fun trying to hide from us, Freak." Narsissa said. Then she motioned to Pepper and Bellatrix and they walked away, leaving the greenhouses. There was a moment of shocked silence as Ziva stared at Lily before she bent down to grab her books, paper, quills and ink, which were now scattered all over the ground because Bellatrix had thrown her satchel in the dirt. Ziva felt her cheeks redden as she quickly tried to hide behind her hair, embarrassed that she had to be saved by this girl. Lily looked at the girl collecting her things from the ground and her face went a little softer, the anger melting from it. She walked forward, got on her knees and helped pick up her belongings too. Ziva saw her collecting her things and froze, not knowing why she was still here. After a moment of silence, Lily looked at Ziva and smiled kindly.

"I'm Lily," She introduced herself. Ziva didn't know what to say- she was stunned. Lily went on. "What's your name? It can't be freak, can it?" she was answered by more silence. Lily sighed quietly and looked at a piece of parchment she had picked up. She read the name at the top of the page. "'Ziva.' Is that your name?" she inquired. Ziva swallowed and nodded, feeling how concerned Lily was for her.

"Yes." She said finally. Lily smiled, happy to see her talking.

"It's nice to meet you, Ziva. I'm sorry those girls treated you like that- don't listen to them. They're the stupidest humans ever," Lily leaned a little closer to Ziva, smiling. "But, between you and I, I have my suspicions that they're part troll." She said quietly. Ziva couldn't help but laugh at that statement and Lily smiled.

"You're probably right. The one did smell of troll," said Ziva as she smiled. "Although, their common room is in the dungeons and I don't want to know what kind of creatures are down there." Ziva said. Lily giggled at her.

"Yeah, well, it's no excuse," Lily handed her back her papers and Ziva put them neatly in her bag with the rest of her books and then Lily helped her up. "Now, answer me this, Ziva; why would they call you a freak? You seem perfectly normal to me." Lily said. Ziva looked at her with a daft look on her face.

"Don't you already know? I thought with your popularity, you'd be in the loop." Ziva told her as she put her satchel over her shoulder.

"Of course I'm 'in the loop.' I just don't understand why they think you're a freak." Lily said to her. Ziva flinched at the term, hating the word.

"Well, I came from a special school in Greece. I guess people just adapted the word to make me sound more interesting or they merely want to make me another topic of conversation." Ziva said. Lily looked at her sadly.

"I don't think you're a topic of conversation." Lily told her. Ziva gave her a small smile as the bell rang and the two of them made their way to the Herbology greenhouses.

"Well, thank you but I'm afraid that that's all I've become," Ziva said as they entered the greenhouse. The class was already there and they turned to look at Ziva and Lily immediately, everything going quieter. Ziva looked around nervously and glanced at Lily. "Well, um…thanks for your help. I'll be sure to repay it someday." Ziva said and tried to make a run for it away from Lily so the attention would stop. As soon as she left, Lily's friends began to call her over.

"Lily! There you are!" said one friend.

"Yeah, we've been looking everywhere!"

"C'mon and sit." Said another friend. Lily found herself hesitating when she saw Ziva at the back by herself once again. Lily sighed and gave her friends a smile.

"Sorry guys, but I want to sit somewhere else today," Lily said, wondering over to the back of the room where Ziva sat. She chose a seat beside her and her friends stared at her like she was insane. Lily gave them another smile. "I hope you don't mind." Her friends exchanged aghast looks before they said 'of course not!' and turned back to their stations, whispering to one another. Lily didn't look at everyone else, even though they were staring at her and Ziva. Even Ziva was looking at Lily with a gawking expression on her face. She leaned towards Lily.

"What are you doing?" Ziva asked flustered. Lily just simply took out her books, smiling.

"I'm sitting somewhere new." Lily said, even though her tone suggested different. Ziva stared at this girl who was knocking her popularity level down as she sat beside her longer.

"That's not what I mean," Ziva looked around at the people whispering nervously and she swallowed. She turned back to Lily. "Why are you doing this?" she asked her. Lily turned to her with a smile on her pretty face.

"Because you deserve to be something more than a mere topic of conversation." Lily told her. Ziva felt shock leak onto her features but she blinked quickly and felt herself go warm inside. The corners of her lips turned upwards in a smile, which felt real for the first time in a very long time.

When the bell rang to signal the end of classes, Remus immediately ran to Ziva's last class. He knew he didn't have much time before the sun set. They had to finish that homework and he had to get ready for tonight. McGonagall usually took him to the Forbidden forest where he would transform. In fact, one time, McGonagall stayed with him so long that he transformed right in front of her and almost killed her. When Remus heard what he had done to her, he began freaking out and he apologized over and over. McGonagall seemed fine with it but even now, when she saw him, there was a fear in the back of her eyes.

"So, are you feeling any better than before?" Ziva inquired as they rowed their way towards the island. Remus shrugged indifferently, avoiding eye contact.

"A little, I guess. I was just tired." Remus lied. He actually felt worse than before. He felt clammy and disgusting, like he ought to have several showers just to get the achiness off his body. His joints were near impossible to move and felt like sand was trapped inside them. He was still extremely pale and the bags under his eyes seemed even more pronounced than usual. He looked like he didn't sleep one wink.

The pair of them got to the shore and onto the island. They took out their books and sat under the tree. Remus felt his scars lash with pain again but he ignored it as best he could. Ziva felt it also and she snuck a peak up at him while he unpacked his things.

"So," Remus said, looking at the page. "I don't think this should take very long, do you?"

"Well, that depends on how good of a teacher you are," Ziva told him, smiling. "I have no idea what kind of moons there are." Ziva said. Remus looked at her and smirked.

"Well, it's your lucky day because I happen to know everything on them." Remus told her, getting his quill out. Ziva smiled.

"Oh, really? Why is that?" she was genuinely curious. But when she asked the question, Ziva felt the deception from Remus again as he awkwardly swallowed and shrugged.

"My-uh-my mum and dad used to study Astronomy. They gave me a moon chart and taught me loads about the moon and the stars." Remus explained to her, even though it was a partial lie. His parents did give him a moon chart and they did teach him about the moon, but it wasn't for his educational knowledge.

"Ah, I see." Ziva said quietly, knowing he was lying. It was making her curious as to why he would lie about such a thing as this.

"Well, should I do a quick lesson? I brought the chart." Remus told her, holding it up. Ziva looked at the big black page with a ring of white orbs, which was the moon, and the definitions underneath each moon, which as the ring went around, would get smaller as it went.

"Yes, please do!" Ziva moved over to sit beside him. Remus smiled a little and showed her the page.

"The beginning of the cycle is the New Moon. This shows that it's gone through a full cycle. After the new moon is the Waxing Crescent-," he pointed to a moon that was showing less than a quarter of its surface. When Ziva nodded, he continued. "After that is the First Quarter moon," only half the moon was showing in this diagram. "Then the Waxing Gibbous-," he pointed to the moon that showed more, over half of its surface. "and then there's the Full Moon, which means it's halfway through the cycle." Remus told her quietly, looking at the Full Moon with hate in the back of his eyes. He took a breath and then continued again. "Then it just basically goes backwards except instead of Waxing Gibbous, the moon becomes a Waning Gibbous, the First Quarter moon becomes a Third Quarter moon and the Waxing Crescent becomes the Waning Crescent. Then it goes right back to a New moon again," Remus explained. Ziva nodded, understanding perfectly. She took out her quill and parchment and sketched the moon cycle from his chart, naming them without looking. "The cycle usually takes about 29 days to complete. A Full Moon happens every month depending on the cycle. The moon surfaces look different depending on where it is when the sun hits it when it comes into the sky. That's why it changes shape." Remus told her. Ziva smiled as she worked.

"You're a great teacher, you know," Ziva told him, looking up at him and then down at her paper. "I didn't think I'd understand it that quickly." she admitted. Remus gave her a tiny smile and began his own sketch.

"Well, it's a simple subject, really. I didn't really teach you- I merely helped you understand." Remus countered.

"But isn't that what teaching is?" Ziva asked with a smile. Remus smiled a little.

"I guess. I just never thought of myself as a teacher." Remus said.

"Have you ever thought of becoming a teacher?" Ziva inquired as she labeled the moons. Remus shrugged.

"It had never crossed my mind," Remus admitted. "I don't think on the future very much."

"I'm the same way," Ziva told him. "I'm always just living life, nothing more."

"Do you know what you want to do when you're older?" Remus asked her, stopping his work so he could look at her. Ziva paused in thought.

"…I want to help people," she finally answered. She looked at Remus. "I want to make them feel better about their lives." She told him. Remus gave her a soft smile.

"You already do a fantastic job." he complimented her. Ziva's cheeks went a little red and she smiled.

"Thank you, Remus." She said. There was a slight silence as the two of them worked. Ziva snuck a look at him as she worked. She was surprised how comfortable she was, just sitting here. She watched Remus re-draw his moon diagram, taking in his focused face. She sighed and finished her diagram.

When Remus finished, he put his moon diagram in his bag and packed up. He could feel the internal clock ticking inside him. Time had moved faster than he'd intended. He looked at his watch and his eyes widened. It was already 6:30. They had missed dinner.

"Oh no." Remus stood up in alarm, grabbing his bag. Ziva looked up at him curiously.

"Oh no? What's wrong?" Ziva asked.

"I have to go," Remus said frantically, making his way over to the boat again. Ziva grabbed her own bag and got up, running after him. "I-I didn't realize the time. I'm sorry, Ziva. I have to take you back." Remus stuttered. Ziva felt the fear coming from Remus as he pulled the boat closer to the shore. Ziva nodded quietly and Remus helped her in the boat. Remus got in quicker than she thought possible and began rowing towards Hogwarts very quickly.

"Remus, if you don't mind me asking," Ziva started nervously. "Where is it that you have to go in such a hurry?" she asked. Remus scrambled to think of a lie, his head whirling.

"I made you miss dinner. I'm sorry. But, I have to go for a special class with Professor McGonagall tonight and I'm going to be late for it." Remus said quietly, his eyes on the castle, trying to row as fast as he could. Time was running out. He had to get back to Hogwarts before it got dark. The sky was already a shade of orange and white, which meant he had less than half an hour to get upstairs, changed and to Professor McGonagall.

He got to shore within minutes and he grabbed Ziva's hand, sprinting up the stairs with her. Ziva kept up easily, although Remus was feeling weaker and weaker which made her feel tired. Remus finally got into the stone courtyard where he ran into the entrance corridor to the Great Hall. He paused for a breath.

"I have to go, Ziva," Remus said. "It was nice doing homework with you!" Remus told her. Ziva gave him a smile as he began to run up the stairs towards the Gryffindor common room.

"I'll see you later, Remus! Good luck with the class!" she called after him. Remus waved at her one last time, sparing one smile before he sprinted out of her sight.

As soon as Remus ran into the Gryffindor Common room and upstairs to his room, he heard voices shouting at him.

"Dude, we've been looking everywhere for you! Where have you been?"

Sirius, Peter and James watched as Remus ran inside and changed into a different outfit- an old pair of jeans and a black t-shirt.

"I had to work on Divination homework with a partner." Remus muttered quickly. Sirius looked angry while James and Peter exchanged looks of amusement.

"You don't have to brag, you know," Sirius said crossly. "We all know you want the freak in your pants." He said. Remus looked at Sirius, not in the mood to mess around.

"You asked me where I was and I told you; I gave you no indication that I wanted any such happenings to occur." Remus countered Sirius, now grabbing his books and straightening his shirt.

"Hey, mate, we aren't trying to set you on edge," James said, putting an arm around Remus's shoulders, when he straightened up. Remus winced when the pressure of his arm aggravated his scars on his shoulder. "Why do you always change into different clothes when you're going to see McGonagall for these 'lessons', huh? You and her have a thing?" James inquired slyly. Again, Remus wasn't in the mood to joke and he glared at him.

"Um, _no_," he said bluntly. "She just recommended I take extra classes for my O.W.L's."

"Mate, your O.W.L's are next year but you've been taking these classes that are once a month since we started Hogwarts." James said suspiciously. Remus felt an uncomfortable twinge in his chest because he knew he'd have to lie again.

"Just drop it, okay? My mum made a special deal with McGonagall to take the classes. I have to take them, okay? Just lay off." Remus said testily. James put up his hands in a form of surrender.

"Whoa, yes ma'am. I guess you're PMSing a little harder than usual, aren't you, Re-Re?" James teased. Remus glared at him, clenching his fists. James was his best mate but sometimes he pushed it.

"Do you even know what that stands for?!"

"Of course I do! Pissed at Men Syndrome." James said smugly, crossing his arms at him. By now, Sirius and Peter saw James was getting on Remus's nerves.

"You might want to lay off him, man-," Sirius started.

"He can take it! He's not a wench. He knows I'm joking around." James objected. Remus raised an eyebrow at him.

"Do I?" Remus grabbed his bag and walked towards the door.

"Oh, c'mon Re-Re! I'm kidding!" James whined. Remus paused at the door, completely losing his patience.

"You know, you're my best mate, James…but sometimes you just need to know when to stop." Remus told him quietly. He gave them all one last look and quickly left out the door, leaving the room.

There was a bout of empty silence for a moment before Sirius sprawled out on his bed and ran his hand through his hair. Peter jumped on his own bed, trying to get comfortable. James, however, didn't move. He stood there, staring curiously at the closed door that Remus just left out of.

"Don't you think it's odd?" James asked them.

"What?" Sirius asked, his mind other places.

"Don't you think it's odd that Remus is acting this way? He always gets testy at a certain time every month." James said. Sirius scoffed.

"He's just pissed at life. It's normal." Sirius said, shrugging.

"I'm not convinced," James said, turning and walking over to them, completely serious. "This has been going on for ages. He's done the exact same thing every month while he's at Hogwarts and nobody seems to notice. It's routine but it's not a proper explanation. Think about it: do you really think McGonagall would give anyone extra lessons at night? She doesn't even allow students out of bed after hours." James said. Sirius smirked at him.

"You heard Remus. His mum worked it out with her." Sirius said.

"And how easy do you think it is to convince McGonagall of anything?" James asked. Sirius shrugged indifferently as Peter piped up.

"Well, what do you think we should do?" He asked James eagerly. James paused for a moment before he strode over to Remus's bed and knelt down. He pulled out his trunk from under his bed, slammed it on the bed and undid the buckles. He flung the lid open and went through his belongings, looking for a clue for something to explain what was wrong with Remus. Sirius sat up, his eyes wide.

"Oy! Why're you going through his trunk?!" He exclaimed. When James had rummaged through his trunk, he moved on to his closet, going through his jean pockets.

"Calm down! It's just his stuff. It's plain, just like Remus's personality." James said, totally distracted as he searched. Sirius stood up, alarmed that James was taking this so seriously. Maybe it was because Remus had insulted him. He probably wanted to get revenge.

"How would you like it if people went through your things?" Sirius asked. James was still completely distracted as he moved to his desk in the corner.

"Be my guest. I have nothing to hide." James said, pushing his glasses up his thin nose. Sirius smirked and, out of spite, he went over to his bedside table and opened the drawer. He rummaged through it for a moment before he withdrew a tiny square package, which set both he and Peter on a laughing attack. As the boys chortled and choked with laughter, James turned and saw the package in Sirius's hand and turned bright pink. When Sirius was able to breathe again, he grinned at James.

"A rubber? Who are you planning on shagging?" Sirius asked him, grinning as Peter roared with laughter. James went redder.

"What? You can't be too careful. I'm a spontaneous guy." James said quickly as he traveled over to Remus's bedside table. Sirius grinned and just to get a rise, he looked at Peter and stuffed the rubber in his pocket. Peter was now red-faced from laughing and he wasn't making any sound. Finally, James found something. He held up the cream that was in his bedside table.

"What's this?" James asked. Sirius strode over and took it, looking at it. Then he threw it on the bed, shrugging.

"Looks like a tube full of rubbish to me." Sirius told him. Peter finally recovered and went over, picking the bottle in his hands.

"Wait a minute- this is the cream Remus uses on his scars. Don't you remember? He puts it on every day. It probably helps them go away." Peter said.

"Yeah, and by the way, how did he even get those scars? They're bloody awful." James said. Sirius sat on Remus's bed.

"He said it was from his dog that he got for his mum." Peter said quietly.

"Yeah, a German Shepherd." James said.

"But, wait a second," Sirius said. "I know dogs. German Shepherds are police dogs: they're trained to be violent. Why would Remus get a dog that would most likely rip his mother to pieces?" he asked.

"He wouldn't." Peter and James said at the same time. Sirius nodded.

"And those scars. They aren't claw marks from a dog. German shepherd's claw marks are closer together than the ones all over Remus. They're wide apart and too deep to be made by a dog." Sirius said.

"Then what is Remus hiding from us?" Peter asked. James reached in the bedside table drawer and pulled out the calendar. He looked at it and noticed the red 'X's on one day every month. He turned to them.

"I don't know yet," James held up the calendar. "But I think this might have something to do with it."

Professor McGonagall and Remus walked out into the Forbidden Forest, McGonagall branching her lit wand ahead of her, peering through the dark of the trees.

"Now, Mr. Lupin, you know the drill," McGonagall said crisply. "I'll find you and help you get back to the castle in time for the rest of the students to get up. If not, I'll get Madame Francis to seal off a part in the Hospital Wing for you and you can recover there until you feel better. I'll inform your teachers of your condition's toll on you so they'll lighten up on the homework for a couple days." McGonagall said. Remus shook his head, also holding his lit wand out so he could see in front of him.

"Really, Professor, it's not a problem. I normally get all my work done." Remus told her. The two of them stopped in the middle of an open clearing in the forest and McGonagall looked at him.

"I've taught you for three years, Mr. Lupin- I know your work habits." She said to him. Remus nodded awkwardly.

"Yes, of course Professor. I apologize." He said humbly. McGonagall waved her hand dismissively.

"Oh, Mr. Lupin, don't apologize, for goodness sake," she looked around nervously. She hated the Forbidden Forest seeing as she knew every creature that resided in this forest. Remus knew she hated it and that she wanted to leave.

"You can go now, Professor. I'm alright out here on my own." Remus told her. McGonagall looked at him incredulously.

"Of course you're not, Mr. Lupin! There are many dreadful creatures in these woods. It's better that someone with a high experience in defending herself against creatures stays with you until the transformation." McGonagall said crisply, still looking around nervously. Remus shifted his feet uncomfortably.

"Professor, if you don't mind my saying so, in a few minutes I will become one of those dreadful creatures and I'd rather not hurt you." Remus told her. McGonagall then turned to Remus, staring at him over her square spectacles.

"I can handle myself, thank you." she assured him. Remus nodded quickly.

"Of course, yes ma'am," he said politely. There was an awkward silence in which Remus sat down against a tree, avoiding eye contact with her. Finally, he decided to ask her a question. "May I ask a query of you, Professor?" Remus asked her. McGonagall looked over at him, blinking.

"If it is appropriate, yes, go ahead Mr. Lupin." She said.

"I can assure you it is. I want to ask you your personal opinion on something." Remus explained. McGonagall seemed hesitant.

"…Go on." She urged him tensely. Remus braced himself a little.

"What do you think of having a student who becomes a savage animal every month attending Hogwarts?" Remus inquired. McGonagall seemed to not know what to say for a moment before she straightened up a little.

"It isn't my place to say, Mr. Lupin." McGonagall said quietly. Remus saw that answer as she thought negatively of it. Remus nodded and looked at his hands.

"Okay. Thanks for letting me ask," he looked up at the sky briefly. "The moon will be out in few minutes. You should probably start heading back to the school now, if you prefer, Professor." He told her. McGonagall glanced at the sky and then nodded.

"Very well. I will see you tomorrow morning, Mr. Lupin," McGonagall said. As it happens every night, Remus handed over his wand to her so he wouldn't break it when he changed. She cleared her throat and began to leave but turned back to him. They looked at one another for a moment before she spoke again. "Be safe." She then turned and disappeared into the forest.

Remus watched until her wand light all was engulfed by darkness and then he waited. These few minutes before he turned were the most terrifying experiences ever. He knew creatures were watching him- he could hear them. But he didn't want to move or run because if he did, they'd chase him and he'd be dead before he'd have a chance to change. There was little sound in this forest except the odd growl or scratching or fluttering of wings. He felt his heart race faster as something behind him moved and a soft, low, rumbling growl sounded. Remus didn't dare turn around because he didn't want to know what was behind him. He knew well enough that if you make eye contact with a creature than it'll be more likely to attack you. Remus sat on edge as the seconds ticked faster towards the rising of the moon.

In these moments before he transformed, Remus usually thought about nice memories before any of this had even happened. His favorite memory was when he was little and his father took him to the Circus which had come to their small town when he was four. He remembered all the animals; the elephants, the tigers, the lions, even the tiny monkey that climbed on his shoulder during the show. He remembered most of the Circus to be an exciting experience for them. Everyone looked so happy and joyful, even his father seemed to be carefree for the first time in years. Remus couldn't help but smile when he remembered his dad saying 'You know, Remus, when I was younger, I wanted to run away and join the circus. I practised juggling and everything. But I just couldn't do it because I was always so scared of animals- I still am." When Remus recalled his father saying that, he felt himself go from happy to depressed in seconds. His father was scared of animals and he'd become an animal. He had become a ferocious animal when he was a young boy and his father still had to help him through his transformations, which were violent and painful. He had to watch his son turn into something that he'd feared the most: a beast.

That's when it started. Remus felt his body go cold and his heart began to race faster and faster in his chest. He felt his mind go dizzy as he stumbled to stand up. The pain began in his chest, paralyzing him where he stood. The pain began to creep through his veins like blood, making his body tremble with the inner turmoil. His breathing quickened and he tried desperately to catch his breath but he couldn't. He was suddenly blind from the light as his eyes began to change and his face grew paler and taunt as his facial structure morphed into a snout with huge teeth. The pain was overly unbearable- he could hardly take it. He heard inhuman screams escape his open mouth as his bones grew agonizingly longer at a rapid pace, his legs and arms twice as long as they usually were and his hands forming into claws. Fur began to spurt out of his back, which was hunching and his shirt and pants gave way with a sharp ripping sound. Remus trembled and screamed as the agony raged on and suddenly, with a strangled howl, Remus Lupin was replaced by a beast. And as the Full Moon shown through the trees into the clearing, the young boy in werewolf form was taken over by his doomed nature and his calculating, smart, reasonable mind was lost inside him as the werewolf opened its mouth, howled at the moon and then charged into the forest, disappearing into trees and crushing darkness**.**


	7. Chapter 6

Chapter five: Recruitment

Hogwarts awoke the next day as if nothing had happened that night in the Forbidden Forest. Everything seemed so normal and serene for anything bad to have happened. As usual, all the students woke in their beds, but when James, Sirius and Peter woke, they noticed Remus was not there. This gave James an even bigger eagerness to find out what was happening with him and since they didn't have Remus's brains to help, he knew just the person to help them figure it out.

Breakfast went quickly and soon it was onto First Period. James made sure that he, Sirius and Peter were early and they caught Ziva before she went inside the classroom, pulling her down a deserted corridor. She struggled as they pulled her away and then surrounded her in the empty hall. She looked at them with wide eyes.

"What is going on here?" Ziva asked them, quite frightened.

"We need your help." James said bluntly. Ziva arched an eyebrow as she broke free of their grasps and put her hand on her hip.

"And what makes me think I'd even want to help you? You publically humiliated me in front of the entire Transfiguration class!" she exclaimed. James rolled his eyes.

"Everyone has probably publically humiliated you, Freak. Now, just listen." James said. Ziva turned to Sirius with angry eyes and he cleared his throat.

"Frea-…I mean, Ziva," he quickly corrected himself when he saw the fury flare in her eyes. "Please just hear us out. It's about Remus." Sirius pleaded. The anger from Ziva's face immediately melted, being replaced by concern.

"I didn't see him at breakfast this morning," she turned to James, the anger coming back. "What did you lot do to him?!"

"We didn't do anything!" James objected furiously. "We're his best friends!"

"Wait, you look for him at breakfast?" Sirius asked, totally sidetracking. Ziva ignored him as Peter and Sirius exchanged looks.

"What's wrong with him? You yelled at me yesterday for asking and now you want me to help?" Ziva snapped, turning to Sirius.

"I didn't yell at you! I gave you valuable advice!" Sirius countered, his eyes wide.

"Oh, I'm sure I can go well without your advice." Ziva spat at him angrily.

"Guys, guys! Remember who we're here for! We need to figure out what's wrong with Remus." Peter told them.

"So, you guys don't know?" Ziva asked them incredulously. "I thought you three were his 'best friends.'" Ziva said sarcastically. James glared at her.

"We are! He's been keeping secrets from us. But we're going to figure this out now," James told her. "This has been going on since we met Remus. Every month he'll just suddenly get sick and then he'll disappear like this the day after. He passes it off as having a class with McGonagall but I know that's rubbish. He's hiding something and we've got to figure out what it is." James said. Ziva nodded, finally agreeing with him.

"I know you do, but why are you bringing me into this?" Ziva inquired curiously. Sirius piped up.

"Well, normally when we're trying to figure out something like this, we have Remus. Remus is the brains of the group, I'm the brawn," Sirius winked, flexing his arms which made Ziva roll her eyes. "Peter is the information-gatherer and James is the charmer. We're a great group, practically built for finding out secrets. But now that the secret we're trying to figure out involved Remus, we don't have the brains of the group." Sirius explained.

"Which is where you come in." James told her, crossing his arms. Ziva's eyebrows pulled together.

"Okay, so you need brains. Why not hire some other Ravenclaw to be the brains of this little group?" she asked.

"Well, we know you care about Remus and you want to figure this out as much as we do." Sirius said to her.

"But we aren't hiring you. I'm not paying you a cent." Said James stubbornly. Ziva looked at James with her arms crossed.

"Oh really? You'd risk figuring out Remus's little secret by losing me over money?" Ziva asked. James blinked, looking confused at her blunt nature.

"Why would we-,"

"What do you want, Ziva?" Sirius asked her. She looked over at him. "Money? Power?"

"Respect," She said. The three boys exchanged looks. "I don't want to be known as the brains of this group while Remus is gone."

"What do you want to be known as then?" Peter asked. Ziva hesitated.

"A friend." Ziva said. Immediately, James snorted with laughter.

"A friend? Why would we ever make friends with a Ravenclaw? You guys are all stuck up and snobby." James nagged. Ziva glared at him furiously.

"And you're a cocky bleeder, but I don't judge you on that."

Sirius and Peter burst out laughing. She turned to give them looks too and the boys were immediately silenced.

"So are you two. But, before you judge people, I'd be nice if you got to know them."

"That's never going to happen." James crossed his arms stubbornly. Ziva looked at them and then handed them back Remus's calendar.

"Then I can't help you." she started to walk away. Sirius gave James a nasty look before he snatched the calendar from James and ran after her.

"Wait!" he called as he ran. They were passed the second hall when Sirius grabbed her arm gently, pulling her to a stop. Ziva looked outraged. "Look, I'm sorry about them-,"

"Sirius, how many times do you have to apologize for them? They're idiots and, frankly, you're not showing to be too bright either." Ziva said as she tried to yank her arm out of his grasp.

"I'm sorry, okay? We aren't Ravenclaws, we don't have your smarts-!"

"Ask yourself this, Sirius: is Remus in Ravenclaw?" Ziva asked him. Sirius shook his head.

"No, but sometimes I wonder whether he should be." Sirius said. Ziva made a sound between and exasperated sigh and a frustrated groan.

"You really should stop being so stereotypical!" Ziva exclaimed. "When the four founders of Hogwarts made the houses, they took positive traits from each person and sorted them according to those traits. For Gryffindors, it's bravery, for Hufflepuffs, its kindness, for Slytherins, it's a cunning mind and for Ravenclaws, it's the ability to complete their studies with ease. That doesn't mean that all Hufflepuffs aren't brave! That doesn't mean that all Slytherins are bad people! And that most certainly doesn't mean that all Gryffindors are stupid thickheads that use their strength to win every argument they get into!" Ziva said exasperatedly. Sirius sighed.

"Fine, if I admit that, will you help us?" He asked her. Ziva held her forehead in dismay.

"You don't get it, do you? It was never that you three guys are stereotypical. I just didn't want Potter calling me a Freak or that Pettigrew guy staring at my chest all the time. I want to be treated as an equal." Ziva said. Sirius pondered that.

"Well, James doesn't know enough about you. He just assumes you're a freak because that's what people are saying. As for Peter staring at your chest, well, I can't say I don't blame him for staring-,"Sirius tried to duck but Ziva's book connected with the back of his head quite nicely. "Eh! Okay, I'll stop. The point I'm trying to make is if you give them a chance, they'll get to know you better. You just have to trust me." Sirius said. Ziva stared at his handsome face thoughtfully.

"…If James calls me a Freak one more time, I'm not doing this." she warned him.

"Don't worry about it. If he ever even thinks about associating you with that word, I'll tell him how I think of you." Sirius vowed.

"And what do you think of me?" Ziva asked curiously. "Do you think I'm a freak too?"

"No," said Sirius gently. Ziva blinked. "I don't. I think you're amazing." He mumbled shyly. Ziva took a few moments to actually let that sink in before she smiled at him. Sirius held out the calendar to her, his grey eyes staring into her blue ones. "Will you please help us? If not for them, for me?" he asked. Ziva thought about it for a moment, hesitating, but then she took the calendar from him and sighed. A grin lit Sirius's face.

"I'm doing it for Remus, okay?" she said, trying to convince herself. His grin got wider as he crossed his arms.

"Uh huh." Sirius said slyly. Ziva glared a little as he chuckled.

"Before you start grinning like a Cheshire Cat, I have to set down a few rules," Ziva said seriously, holding up her pointed finger. Sirius immediately became more serious. "I don't want any harassment from Potter, I want you to tell Peter to keep his eyes on my face at all times and I want to make sure we meet every once in a while to talk about our findings. I also don't want to be the only one looking. You said yourself that your group are naturals at finding out secrets. Use your brawn, James's charm and Peter's resources to help me figure this out. I can't do it all on my own." said Ziva. Sirius nodded, smiling again at her.

"Deal. Thank you. I can repay you." Sirius said handsomely, smiling brightly.

"Oh? And how would you do that?" Ziva asked. Sirius grinned.

"I could repay you in sexual favors," Sirius said slyly. But then he had to duck again when Ziva's book came flying at his face. "Sorry, I was, uh, kidding." He said quickly, trying not to laugh at the outrage on her face.

"Whatever," Ziva said indifferently, trying to hide her blush. "Figure out a time to meet later on this week to swap information and send me a note or something." She said. Sirius nodded.

"Alright."

The bell rang for the class to start. Ziva quickly looked at her watch and then at Sirius.

"Well, I should go. I'll talk to you later." She said quietly. Sirius nodded and smiled charmingly but Ziva quickly turned away and hurried off to her next class before she could see it. He watched her go and tried to keep the smile on his face as he did but it didn't seem to work. He sighed and stuffed his hands in his pockets as he went back over to the guys, who were waiting for him.

"She says she'll help us, but only if you-," he pointed to James. "stop calling her a freak and you-," he pointed at Peter. "stop staring at her jugs. We have to treat her as an equal."

James looked offended whilst Peter looked quite pale and sick.

"She noticed that I was-?" Peter tried but James cut in.

"I don't want to befriend her! She's a stuck-up snob!"

"Just get to know her, James." Sirius said annoyed.

"But I don't want to!"

"Look, do you want to find out what's going on with Remus or not?" Sirius hissed. James glared at Sirius as he crossed his arms. James resigned.

"Of course I do, but I don't want to have to invite her into our group of friends, okay? There isn't any room for girls."

"You wanted to try and make room for Lily." Sirius countered him. James swallowed and looked away for a minute to regain his focus.

"Okay, fine, Sirius. I won't call her a freak. But if she doesn't come up with valuable information by the end of this week, she's out. Understand?" James said. Sirius felt a pang of triumph as he smiled.

"Yes, I understand."

The bell rang again, signaling that class had already started.

"We'd better get to class." Peter said, still looking slightly pale from what Sirius had said about Ziva noticing him staring at her.

"Okay, when should I tell her to meet us?" Sirius asked.

"On Saturday at 5:00. Tell her to meet us in the Quidditch field. Nobody is practising on Saturday." James said. Sirius nodded.

"Okay. See you all later." He greeted them goodbye and all three boys went off to their classes.

When Sirius sat down in his next class, he pulled out a quill and a roll of parchment and wrote the details of the meeting down. He folded it into a paper crane and cast a spell on it. The paper crane flew out of his classroom, down several hallways and up the staircase leading into the Divination classroom where it hovered over to Ziva, who sat alone at her table, studying a star chart from her textbook. It landed right beside her hand. She quickly opened it without Professor Limmer noticing and read the note.

_**Ziva,**_

_**Meet the three of us in the Quidditch field this Saturday at 5:00. We'll be waiting with whatever information we found. Have a great next period. I'll see you soon. Keep out of trouble.**_

_** Yours, Sirius Black**_

Ziva felt a small smile creep up her face as she read it and she gently folded the note and put it in her satchel for safe keeping. Her smile faded a little as Professor Limmer barked at her to do her work. Ziva quickly went back to her Divination textbook and continued to fervently work.


	8. Chapter 7

Chapter seven: Scars, scratches and secrets

Peter, James, Sirius and Ziva tried their hardest in the coming weeks ahead to find out as much as they could about what was wrong with Remus. The day after he'd been 'away sick', he'd come back to school unchanged other than the new scar on his neck that nobody but the three boys and Ziva seemed to notice. Ziva had tried to talk to him during their study periods on the island, but he hadn't spoken a word about his 'night classes' with Professor McGonagall. Sirius had been working his charm on the entire Gryffindor house to try and find out whether they've seen anything suspicious about Remus. The only information he got was that they noticed the scratches but just assumed they were normal for him now, seeing as they never went away. James had been using his resources with the Quidditch teams and various other cliques throughout Hogwarts to try and find information: he'd also found out nothing. Then there was Peter, who had his own way of figuring out information. He kept coming up with little clues he'd heard through the grape vine, but none of them seemed to solve Remus's secret.

It had been nearly a month since Remus's day off sick and the friends were getting frustrated. The three boys and Ziva sat in the Quidditch stadium, talking about their lack of information on Remus's secret. They'd been meeting every Saturday at 5:00 to talk about this since the day they agreed.

"I seriously cannot find a thing on him," said James. "I don't understand why I can't find any evidence!"

"I can't either. Everything seems to point back to the same thing." Sirius said grumpily.

"Neither can I. I haven't heard anything and I know everything about everyone in our school." Peter said. Ziva sighed. She'd found nothing either. She'd tried so hard but Remus covered his tracks very well.

"So, this is what we're saying – we're trying to find out a secret about our best friend whom we thought we knew very well until this happened and the only solid piece of evidence we have is that calendar." Said Sirius angrily, pointing to the calendar. Ziva looked down at her calendar in her hands – she had copied Remus's calendar word-for-word onto a new, separate calendar. The boys had put Remus's calendar back in his night desk, (requested by Ziva) so he wouldn't suspect anything.

"Yes, that's what we're saying," James said darkly, glaring at the calendar. "Does anyone have _any _idea what those red 'X's mean?"

"Well, other than the fact that most of the X's are, give or take, within 24 days of each other, I can't figure out any pattern they may possess and I'm starting to think this is all for nothing," Ziva said crossly, looking through the pages of the calendar. "I mean, if we haven't found anything by now than when are we going to find out?"

"We can't just give up!" James exclaimed at her, getting frustrated.

"Well, of course not!" Ziva yelled back. "But what have we found to prove that there's something wrong with him? Scars and scratches?"

"Yes! Scars and scratches that keep appearing every month!" said James loudly.

"What if this is all because he's ill or has some sort of disease?" Ziva asked them furiously. The three boys went rather quiet. "What if he has some disease that makes scratches appear on his skin every month, kind of like a rash."

"Those scratches are not made from a disease, Ziva," Sirius interjected. "Those scratches are from an animal and a bloody large one at that. I reckon that the animal that did that to him can be found in the Forbidden Forest." He said, looking around at them all. While Peter looked rather pale and glanced around nervously, James leaned forwards, intrigued.

"What do you think caused it, Sirius?" he asked. Sirius shrugged.

"If I knew, I'd tell you, but I don't. 'Seems like some sort of dog."

"Then Remus was telling the truth?" Peter said, tuning back in.

"No, this thing is large – much larger than any German Shepherd scratches I've ever seen." Sirius said. "And the thing is, I've read up on German Shepherds and listen to this; they've docile animals."

"Docile?" James asked stupidly.

"It means they're tame." Ziva brushed off, focusing on Sirius while James made a face at her without her noticing.

"German Shepherds are trained to be police dogs for Muggles. They hunt and sniff out criminals, but if they aren't trained, they aren't very dangerous at all." Sirius said.

"So…why would Remus lie about his dog?" Peter asked.

"I don't think Remus has a dog," Sirius said quickly. "I've been looking out for his lounging clothes that he wears when he's not in his robes and I noticed something – none of them have dog hair on them."

"So?" Peter and James asked.

"So, if a dog was attacking him or even if a dog was in the same house as Remus, he'd have it on his clothes or on something in his trunk, but there is none." Sirius said. Impressed by Sirius' sleuthing skills, Ziva felt herself smile a little.

"Wait a minute-," James looked at the page of the calendar Ziva flipped to. It was on this month. There was a red X on the day after this one. James looked at it. "I wonder…Maybe we should follow him and McGonagall." James said quietly. Peter's eyes widened.

"No, not McGonagall. I-If she catches us-," he started.

"Oh, c'mon Peter! You're a Gryffindor. "'There dwell the brave of heart', remember?" Sirius jested, smirking amusingly. Peter gulped and nodded quietly, fiddling with his backpack strap.

"I still say we follow him." James put in again hopefully. Ziva looked at the calendar hesitantly.

"…I don't know, guys…it seems risky to me. If we get caught, we'll be in loads of trouble. We'll get detention _and _house points taken off-,"

But Ziva was interrupted by loud, obnoxious laughter from all three boys. Her eyebrows furrowed.

"Oy, join the club!" James chortled.

"We'll just add it onto our list of detention dates!" Choked Sirius.

"Yeah, it won't even matter!" Peter gasped.

"Well, it'll matter to me!" Ziva said over their laughter, which quickly died down after that. "Look – I was recommended to come here by my Headmaster at my old school. He told Professor Dumbledore that I was a very responsible individual and I've kept that status up until now. If I do anything wrong, I could get kicked out!"

James looked at her, his smirk growing.

"So? It's just school." James said. Ziva looked as though she was about to behead them and Sirius backed away so fast, he knocked Peter off the bench, who looked terrified.

"Just school? _Just school-?!"_

The bell rang for dinner and the boys and Ziva jumped at the sound. Ziva looked over and saw anyone who was in or around the field begin to head inside for dinner.

"Is it supper already?" Peter asked, looking at his watch, glad for the distraction. The boys saw the opportunity as well and quickly got up.

"It'd better be! I'm starving!" exclaimed James, standing up and stretching. Sirius stood too and looked at Ziva as she packed her satchel violently, angrily pushing the calendar in and closing the latch. "Well, same time next week then, Miss. Goody-two-shoes. We'll get to the bottom of this before you will." James said, grinning as he climbed down the bleachers, Peter awkwardly stumbling along in his wake. Sirius stayed with Ziva until they were out of sight. She began walking down the bleachers too, fuming.

"I'm so-," Sirius started but Ziva interrupted.

"Why is it-," she said as she walked. "That every time I spend time with you guys, I end up getting mad and you end up apologizing?" Ziva asked him.

"I don't know." Sirius said honestly.

"I know why – it's because of Potter. Honestly, doesn't he know everyone thinks he's a pompous prat?"

"Well, he is a pompous prat. I think even _he _knows that." Sirius said earnestly. Ziva scoffed.

"Well, it's not helping him any."

"I'll say it has," Sirius shrugged. Ziva turned on him and he backed off. "Think about it! He's Captain of the Gryffindor Quidditch team, he gets away with murder and he gets all the girls!" Sirius exclaimed.

"Not the one he wants." Ziva mumbled.

"What?"

She sighed at Sirius's ignorance, pausing in the archway leading out of the field. She looked him in the eye.

"Don't you see? Lily doesn't want him when he has his head swelled like a hot air balloon!"

"What's a hot air balloon-?"

"That's beside the point," Ziva interjected. "My point is, Lily doesn't want someone who pretends he's above everyone else and calls her by her last name. She wants someone kind and sweet."

"Well, that takes out half the guys in the school including James." Sirius said gruffly.

"Well, it's what most girls want, actually." Ziva added as an afterthought. Sirius looked at her.

"Do you?" Sirius inquired.

Ziva gave him a look, crossing her arms.

"Why are you interested?"

"Because." Sirius mimicked her, crossing his own arms.

"Because, why?"

"Because, reasons, that's why." Sirius said. Ziva gave him a glare that just turned into a playful nudge in the chest. Sirius grinned and nudged her back and Ziva's face broke into a smile. She giggled as the bell rang again and she glanced at her watch.

"We should be going." Ziva said. Sirius nodded.

"Can I walk you up to dinner?" Sirius asked cordially. Ziva was about to answer 'yes' but then she saw Remus walking up the Quidditch field as well. Sirius hadn't seen him. She quickly gave him a stunning smile.

"You know what? I'll meet you up there in a minute. I just have to grab something, okay?" Ziva said quickly. Sirius smiled back, not noticing Remus at all.

"Okay, brilliant. See you up there." Sirius said with a final charming grin before he began to make his way up to Hogwarts.

As soon as Sirius was out of sight, Ziva hid behind the archway door and waited for Remus. When his footsteps got close enough, Ziva quietly pulled out her wand and took a deep breath. She saw a glimpse of a pale face and brown hair pass the door. She pointed the tip of her wand at Remus's bag.

"_Diffindo." _Ziva whispered. The very bottom of Remus's bag split right down the middle and everything spilled out of it and onto the floor, parchment, quills and textbooks flying everywhere and ink bottles smashing. Immediately, Ziva stowed her wand away and hopped out into sight as Remus cursed loudly. He knelt down but as soon as Remus saw her, he froze.

"Oh, hey Ziva," he saw awkwardly. "What're you doing out here?"

"Oh, just studying with some friends," Ziva said cheerfully, which wasn't entirely a lie. She looked at the mess around him and her smile fell. "Oh, what happened?!"

"My bag ripped. Apparently, it was too full." Remus said, shrugging quietly. Ziva gave him a sympathetic smile and knelt down with him, picking up his heavy Charms textbook.

"No wonder," she grunted, holding the thick book up. Remus smiled and began to clean up his mess. Ziva quickly scanned the pile of papers and quills. She saw several notes, textbooks and a couple broken ink bottles. She pretended to put the parchment in a pile while she hid one that had been folded many times. It looked like Remus wanted to tear it up. She quickly hid it in the pocket of her robes, then she turned and saw a vile of what looked like cream. She snuck a glance at Remus, who wasn't focusing on anything but organizing his scattered notes, and then snatched it and put it in her pocket as well.

"Here!" she said, taking out her wand and pointing it at the broken ink bottles and his bag. "_Reparo." _

The ink collected in the bottles and the broken glass fixed itself and his bag was repaired. With another wave of her wand, all of his papers and books were organized and placing themselves in his bag, followed by the quills and then the ink bottles. Ziva stood and handed the bag to him, smiling. Remus blinked rapidly as he got to his feet and quickly took his satchel back.

"Uh, thanks," he said. "I wish I'd thought of that." he admitted, giving her a smile. Ziva smiled back.

"It was my pleasure. You should get a stronger bag." Ziva said.

"I'll look into it."

Ziva continued to smile as they walked up to the castle.

"So, you've been busy studying?" she asked. Remus nodded.

"Yeah, as always. You?" he asked. Ziva also nodded quietly.

"Yeah. Getting ready for the Divination test tomorrow?" she asked. Remus looked tiredly amused.

"I'm all prepared. I know everything about moon cycles. It's not that hard." Remus said.

Ziva nodded as she smiled.

"Yeah, of course!"

They came up to the front of the Hogwarts doors and Ziva quickly bid Remus goodbye as he walked into the Great Hall. Ziva quickly glanced around her and pulled out the paper and the vile of cream. Just as she was about to unfold the paper, she heard a voice in her ear.

"Very clever."

Ziva jumped violently and jumped around, pulling out her wand and digging it into the person's neck. She sighed and lowered it when she saw it was Sirius, who held his hands up in surrender, looking slightly amused.

"Sorry. I guess I'm a bit jumpy."

"You don't need to play dumb with me, Ziva. I saw the whole thing. Nice bag-splitting trick. I'm sure Hogwartians will use that for all of their clue-finding needs." Sirius smirked as Ziva blushed scarlet.

"Look what I found-," she held out the vile and the parchment. Sirius took them to examine the clues. "It looks like some sort of cream inside the vile and the parchment looks like he meant to throw it out or something. It might be rubbish."

Sirius unfolded the paper and nodded.

"Yeah, it's useless. Some weird Divination worksheet." He said. Ziva blinked and took it from him. She saw it was the paper he'd drawn of the moon cycles. Ziva couldn't help but think this could be something that led them to Remus's secret – she didn't know why; she just had a gut feeling.

"Well, I'll keep it anyways," she folded the paper and put it back in her pocket. "What do you reckon is in the vile?"

Sirius uncorked it and sniffed the contents.

"Hm. It smells like the cream Remus puts on his scars every night."

"Maybe he has a vile he carries around too." Ziva said. Sirius nodded.

"Maybe. You should keep it to make sure though. I think I'm going to go with James tomorrow as well. I want to figure this out." Sirius said quickly. Ziva sighed, not wanting to argue with him.

"Alright, you have fun with that. Send me a message if you find anything new." Ziva said. Sirius nodded again and gave her a grin.

"You worried about me?" Sirius asked her slyly. Ziva felt her cheeks go red.

"No, of course not. You can bloody well do what you want." Ziva said, tucking the vile away as well, focusing on the latch on her bag. Sirius smirked at the obvious fib.

"Well, if you change your mind, you're always welcome to come with us." Sirius said. Ziva nodded in thanks and gave him a smile. Sirius swiftly took her hand and pecked it, looking into her eyes. Ziva felt her stomach fill with butterflies. When he dropped her hand, the grin grew. "I'll see ya later, Ziva." He said as he smiled handsomely and then he quickly ducked back into the castle to enjoy his dinner, leaving a shocked and quite happy Ziva behind him.


	9. Chapter 8

Chapter eight: Who let the dogs out?

The next day passed quite quickly indeed. James, Sirius and Peter kept a very close eye on Remus, as did Ziva. Ziva could tell Remus was in pain again and it made her drowsy just by sitting beside him because of the transfer of his emotions. His scars were stinging again and he was totally out of it. When Mr. Limmer announced that there would be an exam for the moon and star cycles the day after this, Remus looked as though he was about to cry or break down into a hysterical fit. Ziva tried to ask him if she could help him study but he simply said "No, there's nothing you can do" and he left without another word.

By the time dinner was happening, Remus was almost dozing off into his Yorkshire pudding and potatoes with gravy and roast beef. He looked green when Ziva turned to look at him. She also exchanged a look with Sirius, who gave her a nod and the two of them turned back to their dinner. Professor McGonagall kept checking her watch and sneaking glances at Remus but Dumbledore gave her a reassuring look and a smile and she seemed to relax for the rest of dinner.

When dinner was over, everyone got ready for bed. Remus knew he had to leave, but he felt as though they were suspicious of him, so he got dressed in his pajamas like normal and quietly got into bed. The boys, however, were already in bed when he got up, all three of them under their covers.

"Man, I'm so tired!" James said with a fake yawn. Sirius stretched out under the covers like a cat while Peter snuggled into his pillow.

"I know! McGonagall worked us hard today." Sirius said, his voice strained with fake tiredness. Remus thought this was odd but he climbed into bed. He snuck a glance out the window and saw the sky was an orange color. He gulped, but he was going to stay here until they were asleep.

"How'd she work you hard?" Remus asked. Sirius quickly thought something up on the spot.

"Uh…she was showing us how to make chairs disappear." Sirius explained. Remus blinked.

"We don't start Vanishing spells until next year." He said confusingly. Sirius shrugged.

"Don't ask me. Ask McGonagall." Sirius said. Remus looked at him before he nodded and settled down in his bed too.

"Well, goodnight everyone." Remus said quietly.

"G'night." The three muttered in unison. The boys immediately shut their eyes and began to pretend to sleep.

After a few minutes, Remus heard their slow breathing and he opened his eyes again. He looked at them all – they all seemed to be asleep. He very quietly sat up and moved his covers off him. The sky was now a light purple – he had close to half an hour. Remus quickly grabbed his wand from the dresser and heard James snoring from the other side of the room. Remus tiptoed to the door where he opened it and slowly closed it without making a sound as he did so. Then he was gone.

Just like that, the three boys whipped their covers off and stood up, fully dressed and awake. They all snatched their wands and they started to head out. Right before they left, however, James seemed to remember something.

"Wait!" he whispered. He ran over to his trunk and grabbed his cloak. However, this was now ordinary cloak. This was an Invisibility cloak. The three boys knew it quite well by now. The boys grinned as James threw it over the three of them, making them disappear underneath the now translucent cloak. Then, completely invisible, the three boys tiptoed their way out of their dormitory and they followed behind where Remus had gone, ready to find out his secret

In the Ravenclaw dormitory, Ziva crashed down on her four poster bed and stared at all the Divination homework she had. She knew she should try to focus on studying, but it was very difficult seeing as all she could think about was the boys going after Remus. She sighed and ran her hand through her curly, black hair and opened the Divination textbook. She quietly glanced at the first couple pages of the book, scanning them with her blue eyes and storing information away.

However, as she went along the chapter about Moon Cycles, it mentioned something that Ziva was sure she'd thought about before and the thought had definitely not occurred in Divination class. Ziva read the sentence out loud.

"_It takes 24 days to complete a full Moon Cycle." _Ziva listened to the words. "_Every 24 days, a new moon appears – this moon is commonly known as the Full Moon."_

Ziva's eyebrows pulled together. Then it clicked – the calendar! Ziva took the calendar from her bag and quickly flipped to the month before this one. She found the red 'X' and started counting the days. She counted all the way up to 24, where she stopped when her finger landed on another red 'X' on today's date. Ziva blinked and looked back in the calendar days. She counted the days and how many X's there were. There was only one red 'X' per month and it was always 24 days apart from one another. Ziva felt as though she was onto something.

Tucking a black curl behind her ear, Ziva's eyes roamed her bed for more textbooks. She saw her Transfiguration textbook, her Charms textbook, Defence against the Dark Arts and Herbology. But, underneath all the mess, her eyes focused on one book in particular: _Care of Magical Creatures_.

She immediately snatched it from under her pile of parchment and she opened it. She flipped through the pages, a guess forming in the back of her head. She finally found the page – _Werewolves and other human beasts_. She began scanning the paragraph with her eyes and saw exactly what she was looking for.

"_Every month, an individual who has been passed on the gene of the werewolf or has been infected with a scratch or Werewolf bite, will turn into a full-grown Werewolf for only one night. Being 24 nights apart in the moon cycle, the individual has time to prepare for the next transformation and can be treated for any injuries it might endure during it's time as a Werewolf. These injuries usually include many lacerations on the torso, arms, shoulders, neck, back and face. Most Werewolves will apply a special type of cream called 'Baneswood', which helps the scars and scratches to heal and fade over time. It also takes any pain away for the time being._

_ "Note that the individual becomes a Werewolf will become fatigued, drained and in much pain as the night of the full moon draws closer. The Werewolf will not be able to function by doing various activities and it will most likely become very weak and tired as the full moon approaches."_

Ziva felt a wave of realization wash over her as she stared at the page. She quickly took the vile of cream and the piece of paper that she'd confiscated from Remus yesterday and examined them. She now assumed the vile of cream was Baneswood. She opened the parchment and looked at the moon cycle Remus had drawn. Her eyes immediately fixated on the full moon – she noticed something she didn't before; the full moon had been scratched out violently. The paper had ripped from the end of his quill scratching against it. Ziva felt her face drain of color as she looked back at the bottom of the book and saw the final paragraph of the Werewolf description.

"_During a transformation, the individual will morph into a Werewolf. Once in Wolf form, the individual will lose a conscious mind and forget who he is, where he is and anyone he has ever known. Many werewolves have been known to murder entire villages of people in one night, taking people from their beds and slaughtering them. When the individual is in Werewolf form, there is no difference between his friends and his foes."_

And that's when it hit her – Ziva's skin went cold and she felt her heart start to race. James, Sirius and Peter were in grave danger. They didn't know what to do if they found Remus and if Remus spotted them, they'd be dead.

Ziva jumped up from her bed, grabbing her travel cloak and her wand. She fastened her cloak around her neck and branched her wand as she darted out of the Ravenclaw dormitory, out of the door and down the castle stairs, going out to the Forbidden Forest to try and warn Peter, James and Sirius before it was too late.

The leaves and twigs under the boy's feet made sounds as they trotted on them. James had his wand branched out in front of him as the three boys walked through the Forbidden Forest, hidden beneath the cloak. They listened for a sound or a signal of Remus but there had been none – not for the last ten minutes. The sky above them was black now and the moon had begun to peak through the thick clouds overhead. The boys did not notice the change in light as it got darker. They simply walked through the trees, keeping their ears tuned for any sign of noise.

Suddenly, they heard rapid footsteps and McGonagall broke through the bushes, looking terrified. She had her lit wand branched out in front of her. The three boys stumbled to the side as she plowed right through, going at full speed, trying to get out of the forest. That's when they heard it – the screaming.

The boys could tell it was Remus by the sound of it. It sounded agonized and hysterical. James looked back at them and then the three boys ran towards the sound of the screaming. Within two minutes, they found Remus in a dark clearing, shaking and screaming at the top of his lungs. They watched as his body began to grow, his limbs growing longer an his clothes ripping to shreds because of the rapid rate of his body growth. Hair started to grow all over his body as the once teenage boy began to spurt into a 7 foot tall monster with snapping jaws, long clawed hands and a long snout. The human screams soon turned into harsh agonized howling and Remus Lupin knelt over in the ground, snarling at the ground. The three boys stood petrified as they watched what was once their best friend crouch on all fours in a beastly form.

Just then, the huge werewolf stood up on its hind legs and sniffed the air as though it'd caught a wiff of something close by. It's large glowing eyes focused on where the boys stood, shielded by their Invisibility Cloak. When the beast's eyes met James', he made a huge mistake – James through off the cloak and looked straight on at the beast. Sirius felt his blood go cold when the werewolf started snarling at the three of them, it's ears flattening to its skull.

"Remus?" James tried. The beast got on his hind legs and began coming at the boys, clearing the space between them in seconds. James saw he didn't recognize him and he began running, Sirius and Peter at his tail. "Remus! It's us!" he tried to scream. The werewolf just ran faster, it's jaws snapping at the boys heals.

Then, the boys and Remus heard another sound – a girl screaming. They listened closer as they ran, trying to figure out who it was. When James and the two other boys stopped to take a breath, Remus wasn't in sight. The boys thought they lost him. That's when they heard it again.

"-Werewolf! Run, Sirius! Run, guys! It's not safe!" Ziva's voice broke from the silence as the boys caught their breath. She wasn't far away now. "Run! He's dangerous!"

Sirius looked around wildly for Ziva, his lit wand illuminating the darkness in front of them. Just then, they heard more howling and the werewolf broke through the bush, coming right at James, Sirius and Peter. The three boys screamed in terror as the beast came at them with full force. It raised its clawed hand, swung down and-!

"_Protego!" _Ziva cried, breaking through the other side of the bushes, her wand pointing at the three boys. The werewolf's hand bounced off the invisible shield and it howled in anger. It's head snapped over to look at where the voice came from and it saw Ziva. Ziva's eyes widened and she pointed her wand at the beast as it began running at her. "_Stupefy!" _the red spell bounced off of the werewolf, causing no harm whatsoever. "_Expelliermus!" _she cried, shooting spells at him as the werewolf picked up speed, coming right at her. Ziva realized it was no use and tried to turn to run but knocked into a tree. She turned around just in time to see a claw come down and slash her face. A huge gash appeared and Ziva screamed in agony, trying to shield herself. The werewolf knocked her over, sending her body flying.

"Ziva!" Sirius screamed. The werewolf swung his claw down again, scratching her torso as she tried to protect herself, crawling backwards, her wand knocked out of her hand. Sirius raised his wand. "_Protego!" _the spell shot out of his wand, but it missed Ziva. Sirius ran over, leaving James and Peter behind him. He grabbed a thick tree branch from the ground and stood in front of Ziva just as the werewolf's teeth came swooping down at her. Remus's jaw collided with the thick tree branch, the force of the hit almost knocking Sirius over. He pushed hard against the branch as it's jaws snapped and bit into the branch, tearing it in half. When it snapped, Sirius took one side of the branch and swung very hard at its face, where it collided and made the werewolf stumble away from Ziva. It snapped its head back to Sirius and let loose a growl that made Sirius's hair stand on end. He stared terrified into the Werewolf's vicious eyes and knew this was it. He could feel Ziva behind him, shrieking as the wolf came closer to them.

_This is it, _Sirius thought. _I'm gunna die._ He turned and helped Ziva up and shielded her behind him, his entire body shaking. The werewolf advanced and he backed away, trying to get Ziva to safety. Remus came closer and closer until he stood over them on his hind legs. He roared at them and his claw swung down once again.

The beast was tackled to the ground by James and Peter. James hit him over the head with a rock and Peter made sure he couldn't get up. Remus struggled under them, growling and roaring. James kept hitting him with the rock. It looked as though the werewolf was tiring as Sirius watched. Then suddenly, two more people joined them in the clearing.

"_Immobulus!"_ Professor McGonagall shrieked her, wand pointing at the werewolf. Immediately, every joint in its body froze and it could not move. It was still growling and it snarled at them, but it couldn't move. Professor Dumbledore shot thick and heavy restraints around the beast's body, holding him there as the boys fell off and to the forest floor, panting heavily.

From behind Sirius, he heard Ziva's whimpering and then he turned around just in time to see her crumple unconscious to the forest floor. Sirius immediately got down on his knees and looked at her blood-covered body. Her face was bleeding profusely, so much so that you could hardly see her pale skin through the red river of blood. Sirius felt his body go cold with fear as McGonagall made sure Remus was tied up tight enough. Dumbledore came over and knelt beside her too.

"Ziva," Sirius said, his skin going a sickly pale color. "Ziva, please, no."

"Mr. Black, I suggest you give Ms. Ziva some room." Professor Dumbledore told him gently, taking off his purple traveling cloak and putting it under Ziva's head. She did not stir.

"Sir," Sirius croaked. "Her face…"

"I know, Mr. Black, I know. Just stay calm. She'll be alright." Dumbledore assured him as McGonagall came over and spotted Ziva lying on the ground, covered in blood. She gasped, her eyes widening behind her square spectacles.

"Oh my! Albus, what do we do?" McGonagall said as she knelt down also. James and Peter had now come over as well – they went as pale as Sirius had.

"We do what we can," said Dumbledore, picking Ziva's unconscious, limp body up in his arms. "I shall meet you all in the Hospital wing very soon." And with that, Dumbledore Disapperated without a trace.

The three boys blinked for a moment before Sirius looked at McGonagall.

"I thought nobody could Apperate or Disapperate on school grounds." Peter said confusingly. McGonagall turned to them, peering over her glasses at them.

"Mr. Pettigrew, he is Headmaster. Only the Headmaster can transport on Hogwarts' grounds." She said. There was a moment of heavy silence before Sirius looked over at Remus, still in his werewolf form, completely immobile.

"…What do we do with him, Professor?" Sirius asked. McGonagall glanced at the werewolf before turning away, looking rather uncomfortable to see an animal in such a state – its head was bleeding from the rock James had been striking him with and he had many scratches all over his body.

"_You _can't do anything with him, Mr. Black. Unfortunately, Mr. Lupin will have to remain in this state until the morning, in which time, I will come down from the castle and unfreeze him and then bring him up to the Hospital Wing. For now, I suggest you boys go up to the castle and go back to your dormitories right this instant."

James looked at Professor McGonagall exasperatedly.

"What?! But, Professor, we want to help Remus!" James exclaimed.

"You cannot help him, Mr. Potter. He is beyond helping." McGonagall said harshly. James looked at a loss for words for a moment.

"But, Professor, we want to-!" James started.

"I want to stay with Ziva!" Sirius shouted over him, getting to his feet. McGonagall turned to him, looking furious.

"No, Mr. Black! Do you realize how many rules you have broken just by being out here tonight?! I have half a mind to expel all of you right this instant!"

All three boys looked at her with terrified eyes.

"But, Professor, we're sorry-!" James tried. McGonagall held up her hand.

"I don't want to hear it right now, Mr. Potter. You three boys go up and stay in your dormitories until the morning! And if I hear that you have taken any detours then I will expel all three of you!" McGonagall snapped at them. Sirius saw she was not messing around and he got up. He picked up both his wand and Ziva's and he began heading back. The boys followed in suit and wandered back up to the castle.

"Expelled? Do you really think we'll be expelled?" James asked as they walked.

"I hope not," Peter said nervously, holding his wand in his hands. "What are we gunna do?!"

"Did you see her face?" Sirius interjected. The two boys fell silent as they turned to stare at Sirius, who was looking directly at the ground. Nobody said a word for a moment.

"I'm sure she'll be okay, Sirius," Peter said. "The cut didn't look that deep."

Sirius ignored him as they got to the castle. He got up the staircases and up to the Gryffindor common room entrance.

"Cornish Pixies." Sirius muttered at the door. The Fat Lady let them through. Sirius went upstairs and got straight into bed, his mind only on how horribly bloody Ziva's face was. He ignored Peter's words of comfort as he settled into bed and he fell asleep with his guilty conscious filling his mind with very dark and agonizing nightmares.


	10. Chapter 9

Chapter nine: The Blame Game

Remus's eyes flickered open. Sun poured through the window behind him, covering him in a bright light. Everything was silent other than a clock ticking somewhere close by. It took Remus a moment to realize where he was – every time he woke up in the Hospital Wing, he wasn't sure how he got there and normally he'd be alone the day after his transformation. McGonagall usually came to see if he was alright and the school nurse would come to help him with any pain he felt.

But he wasn't alone – Remus only realized this when he turned his head and saw a Gryffindor tie at his eye level. He looked up to see James Potter and Peter Pettigrew at his bedside. Remus blinked confusedly, trying to make sure this wasn't a dream. He only realized it wasn't when James started talking.

"You alright, mate?" James asked. Remus took a moment to comprehend his words.

"…Been better," Remus said quietly when in actuality, he felt like he'd been hit by a train. He had new scars and his head hurt more than it ever had in his entire life. "…I-I…I had a run in with a dog outside-,"

"Remus," James stopped him before he could get the excuse out. "We know."

Again, Remus took a moment to try and understand what that meant. They knew? But-,

"How?" Remus asked him, peering through the light to see his face. Peter awkwardly edged away from James as though whatever he'd done, he'd had no part of.

"We, uh…we followed you," James said nervously. Remus blinked, not sure he heard that right.

"…You followed me?"

"Yeah – out into the Forbidden Forest. We just wanted to know what was going on with you. We didn't realize what would happen." James said quietly, his voice almost guilty. Remus looked at them for a moment, looking for any wounds he could have caused.

"What did happen?" Remus asked them. James and Peter both exchanged anxious looks. That's when Remus noticed something: "Where's Sirius?"

"I'm over here." Sirius's voice sounded from behind James and Peter – it sounded dead. Remus craned his neck but he couldn't see him. Remus looked at James questioningly, but he just avoided eye contact.

"There was a…an accident," James said quietly. "Nobody meant for it to happen…it just did."

"What happened?" Remus asked, his voice now deadly serious. The boys hesitated, glancing at one another. Remus felt anger and frustration building up inside his chest. "Tell me what happened!" Remus hollered. James flinched at his tone of voice and stood up. He and Peter slowly moved out of the way so that Remus could get a closer look at the bed beside him, the bed that Sirius was sitting on the other side of, looking grave and worn, but very angry. When Remus's eyes found the individual in the bed beside him, his head stopped in his chest – it was Ziva.

Lying in the bed next to him, Remus saw Ziva's face, tilted towards him. Her eyes were shut (she was obviously still out) and the entire right side of her face was bandaged and Remus could swear he saw a blood stain in the white piece of gauze. Her torso was also bandaged up and she was in a hospital gown. Her skin was taunt and pale, almost colorless, and she looked sick. She laid utterly motionless in the bed, not making a single movement except for the slow rise and fall of her chest.

Remus stared in horror at Ziva's face, putting all the pieces together. His heart pounded in his ears – so much so that he could almost not hear Sirius giving a quiet explanation.

"When we followed you out, Ziva realized what you were. She came out to warn us but when she did, you attacked us and she protected us from you but, by doing that, you attacked her in the process and almost killed her, but Professor McGonagall came to save us…" Sirius's sentence trailed off. Remus felt tears behind his eyes threaten to come forward. He blinked hard, trying to ignore the pan in his heart as he stared at Ziva's motionless body. He felt a lump grow in his throat as Peter cut in.

"You can't blame yourself for this, Remus. It isn't your fault." Peter assured him gently. Remus shook his head, staring at Ziva. He tried to sit up, but his head spun and the scratches on his body flared in pain. He laid back again, slightly breathless.

"Take it easy, mate," James said, putting a hand on his shoulder. "You're still healing up-,"

"Is she okay?" Remus asked him sharply. James blinked. "Tell me – is she okay? Will she be okay?"

"Yeah, she'll be fine," James said. "It's just a scratch, mate. Nothing to worry about-,"

"Half of her face is bandaged," Remus interjected, his voice an angry hiss. "Why is that not something to worry about?"

That's when Sirius spoke up.

"What he meant was that it's nothing for _you _to worry about." Sirius said flatly. Remus turned to look at him. He could see from where he was laying that Sirius was holding Ziva's hand. He felt jealousy and hate fire start inside him.

"What do you mean? I did that to her. I deserve to be worried about her." Remus objected.

"Sure you do, but there's nothing you can do for her, so it's really no use." Sirius snapped. Remus stared at him with incredulous eyes.

"And you expect me to believe that you're gunna take care of her?" Remus asked testily. Sirius glared him down, his heart beating fast.

"At least I'm not the one who sliced her face in half." Sirius shot at him.

In seconds, Remus had jerked into a sitting position and had grabbed his wand from the dresser. He turned to jinx Sirius, but the Hospital Wing doors opened and in came Lily Potter. The four boys froze (Remus in mid-spell strike) and turned to look at her as she looked at all of them. Lily awkwardly stepped inside the Hospital Wing, looking confused and slightly worried.

"Er…everything okay in here?" Lily asked hesitantly, her eyes on Remus's drawn wand. Remus slowly lowered it back to the bedside table and he sat back as the boys anxiously straightened themselves up, as though they should be better behaved in the presence of a female. Lily, however, didn't focus on them for very long because she spotted Ziva, who was still out cold. Her mind filled with worry. "Is she alright? Professor Sprout just told me what happened."

"You mean you know what happened?" Remus asked, his tone edgy. Lily blinked confusingly.

"Of course! She got hit with some spell that cut her face trying to break up a fight between you guys!" Lily said. "By the way, nice going." She glared at all of them. The boys all exchanged looks at one another –she didn't know what really happened. Perhaps Professor McGonagall told her that.

"It wasn't our fault." James muttered. Lily ignored him as she walked over and sat on the other side of Ziva, taking her hand. She moved a curl out of her face, looking concerned.

"So, why are you here?" Sirius asked her abruptly, looking directly at Lily. Lily tried to ignore him, but thought it best to respond.

"Why wouldn't I be here?" Lily questioned, giving Sirius an annoyed look. She was normally okay with Sirius, but she assumed he played a big part in Ziva's injury, so she wasn't happy with him at the moment.

"No, I mean, why are you here? Why would Sprout tell you that she'd been hurt?"

"Because we're friends, which is more than you've been to her." Lily accused. Sirius snarled at her.

"You don't know anything about me or our relationship." Sirius hissed.

"Nobody does." Remus mumbled loud enough for him to hear. Sirius glared at him before turning back to Lily.

"You can't say anything about being friends with her. I'm convinced you only hang out with her in Herbology because you need to get away from those twat friends of yours." Sirius said harshly. Lily was taken aback by how mean he was being.

"H-How can you even _say _that?! I would never do that to her! Just because you want to get in her skirt-,"

"_I don't want that!" _Sirius snarled harshly. Lily shot him a look.

"Well, why else would you want to hang out with a Ravenclaw, Sirius?! You've hated them for years!"

"Well maybe I changed my mind!" Sirius yelled. The nurse peaked her head out of her office.

"Is everything alright in there?" she asked. James looked over and nodded.

"Yes, everything's fine." He muttered just loud enough for her to hear. The nurse nodded hesitantly, before giving them all looks, and then going back to her work. Sirius ground his teeth together and quickly snatched his wand from the table and headed for the door.

James and Peter exchanged looks of confusion.

"Where are you going?" James asked incredulously, standing up. Sirius ignored him as he flung the door open.

"Away from here." Sirius muttered under his breath. As the door swung shut in their faces, Sirius' pace quickened and he marched out of the Hogwarts' doors and into the courtyard. He furiously kicked a stone out of his way and stared darkly at the ground, his heart pounding in his ears. Fury pulsed through his veins like blood and his fists were clenched so hard that his knuckles turned white. He glowered at the ground as though he expected it to glower back and he just kept walking until he came to the end of the Hogwarts grounds where he abruptly stopped. He crashed down onto the grass by a tree and yanked his wand out. He swished it and made a patch of grass in front of him go up in flames. He watched it burn with a satisfaction leaking onto his face. He felt the thrill in his fingertips as the flames curled upward and traveled from each blade of grass. He didn't notice, however, that the flames were crawling very quickly towards him. With wide eyes, Sirius raised his wand again.

"_Aguamenti." _Sirius said. Water shot out of the tip of his wand and he watched it douse the fire until it was nothing but curled, dead, black grass. He felt his heart beat slow to a steady beat again and then he remembered. He looked down and pulled aside the fabric of his shirt to look at the locket his mother gave him to protect. He quickly took it off and stared at it while it was in his hand. It felt hot – abnormally hot, like it'd been on fire and not the grass. He also felt the metallic heartbeat that he was told never to question. After a few moments of careful contemplation, Sirius tried to undo the latch on the locket. It wouldn't budge. He used all the strengths his hands could muster but it still wasn't enough. He growled in frustration and raised his hand to throw the locket when a shadow fell on him. Sirius slowly looked up to see the tall stature of his brother, looking down at him.

"What…are you doing?" Regulus asked Sirius, his black eyebrow arched high. Sirius cleared his throat awkwardly and lowered the locket.

"Nothing," Sirius said quickly. "What are you doing out here?"

"I was practising for Quidditch and saw you walking. I thought I'd come see you." Regulus said simply. Sirius looked up at his older brother with skepticism in his dark eyes.

"Oh, really? How thoughtful of you." Sirius said, stowing his wand in his pocket.

"Well, I'm a thoughtful person. Now, are you going to tell me why you were going to chuck mum's locket into the dirt, or do I have to guess?" Regulus asked him, his arms crossed over his broad chest. Sirius glared up at him and then stood up. He was a few inches shorter than his brother, but he could still stare him in the eye.

"It's none of your bloody business, that's why." Sirius snapped darkly. He gave his brother another look before he turned and started walking back towards the school. Regulus followed him easily, staring pleasantly ahead.

"You know, I could always Owl mum and tell you what you almost did. You know it's your turn to protect it, Sirius." Regulus said knowingly. Sirius stared furiously at the ground – every time he said his name, he sounded like their father and Sirius hated that.

"Yeah, I know, thanks for the friendly reminder." Sirius grumbled.

"C'mon, little brother, you know how important it is to mum that you keep it safe. You want her to get sick again?" Regulus asked.

"What if I do, _big brother?"_ Sirius said sarcastically. Regulus looked offended.

"Sirius! How dare you wish such a thing on our mother!" Regulus exclaimed. Sirius turned to look at him, halting mid-step.

"Regulus, you can spout that shit to mum, but you can't do it to me. You want her dead as much as I do." Sirius said crossly. Regulus opened his mouth to speak again but he saw somebody come up to him and he froze.

"Hey, Regulus," Lucius Malfoy said, his grey eyes resting coldly on Sirius for a moment. "C'mon, we have to take that Quidditch photo with Slughorn."

Lucius was dressed in his green Quidditch uniform, his long, shaggy blonde hair tied back to expose his pale, pointed face and slate grey eyes. Lucius was about as tall, if not taller, than Sirius, but was less built than him. Sirius, who loathed Lucius with every fiber of his being, glared back at Lucius as he saw a glimmer of insult in his pale eyes.

"Ah, talking to little Black, I see," Lucius drawled, looking straight at Sirius while Regulus awkwardly stared down at his feet. "How are you, Sirius? Doing well? Or was that you I saw stamping across the field?"

"I didn't _stamp_, Malfoy. I was just walking." Sirius snapped. Lucius tsked, looking falsely taken aback by his anger.

"Touchy, touchy. You Gryffindors should learn how to control your temper." Lucius said snidely.

"We can control anything we bloody well please." Sirius snarled.

"Oh yes, I'm sure of it. That's why your Quidditch Captain is so organized and has made up the team already. Does your messy-haired friend even know that there is a game next Friday or has that little tidbit of information not gotten past his thick skull yet?"

Sirius lunged at Malfoy, snatching his wand out of his pocket, ready to defend James' honor, but Regulus pulled him back easily, giving him a glare.

"Jumpy little dog, aren't you?" Malfoy sneered. Sirius glared at him as Lucius turned to give Regulus a curt nod. "Regulus, come when you've calmed your pup down." And with that, Lucius strode back to the Quidditch Field.

Regulus glared down at his brother and released him.

"Would you stop it? I don't need to get kicked off the team."

"You're a Quidditch Captain! You can't get kicked off!" Sirius said, brushing down his robes furiously.

"If Slughorn is involved, anything is possible. Besides, I don't need you getting into fights with Malfoy. He and his huge friends would beat you to a pulp." Regulus said.

"Since when do you care about my well-being?" Sirius asked grouchily. Regulus gave Sirius a look.

"Mum wanted me to look out for you, remember?" Regulus reminded him, as though that justified it. "Just stay out of trouble, okay? Or I'll have to tell mother."

Then, Regulus turned on his heel and quickly went back to the Quidditch Pitch, leaving Sirius standing there in anger-filled silence.


	11. Chapter 10

Chapter ten: The troubles of many outweigh the few

On her way to Herbology later that week, Andromeda Black noticed the atmosphere around the Ravenclaws had changed. She noticed that the Common Room was a lot quieter than usual (mind you, the Ravenclaw Common Room was almost always quiet because most of them were studying or reading the plethora of books in the Main Bookshelf they had in their Common Room), but Andromeda had seen most of the boys and girls muttering to one another about something that could be very serious. Andromeda wasn't sure what that something might be, but when she entered the Herbology classroom and sat down, taking out her textbook and gardening gloves, she heard several Ravenclaws and Gryffindors gasp in shock. When she looked up from putting on her gloves, Andromeda saw why all of the Ravenclaws had been so quiet.

Walking into the greenhouse was Lily Evans, carrying her bag on one shoulder and gently steadying Ziva with the other. The thing that had made everyone gasp and recoil was the fact that Ziva, who's skin was once flawless and pale, now had a long red scar running diagonally down the right side of her cheek and forehead. The scar looked recent, like it had happened just a few days ago, and Ziva's skin was paler than usual, and taunt, as though she'd been sick. There were bags under her bright blue eyes and even they had lost their shine. For the first time since Andromeda had seen her, Ziva looked…fragile.

Ziva avoided eye contact with everyone as Lily helped her to her seat, sitting at the very back with her in their usual spot, away from anyone else. Murmurs and whispers followed them and Andromeda saw a couple of Ravenclaws exchange looks. Even as Professor Sprout started the class, without saying anything about Ziva, Andromeda couldn't focus – she wondered what had happened. Andromeda knew that Sirius, her cousin, had been hanging out with her a lot. She made up her mind to go talk to him after class ended and find out what was going on – she didn't usually pry like this, but this seemed pretty serious to her.

When the bell rang after the lesson, Andromeda grabbed her stuff and hurried out of the greenhouse before the swarm of students could trap her. She knew that Sirius would have Defense against the Dark Arts right now, so she hurried into Hogwarts and into the Corridor where she waited for Sirius. She didn't have to wait long because he came striding down the hall two minutes later. Judging from the look on his face, Sirius looked like he didn't want to talk, but Andromeda had to find out what was going on with her cousin.

"Hey, Sirius," Andromeda said as he walked up. His dark eyes focused on her and he stared at her for a moment before giving her a nod and trying to walk around her. Andromeda walked beside him. "Can I ask you something?"

"If it has something to do with Regulus or my mother, I don't give a flying rat's ass-,"

"No, it doesn't," Andromeda interjected. "It has to do with Ziva."

Immediately, as though his joints froze, Sirius halted on the spot and tried to get rid of the feeling he got in the pit of his stomach.

"What about her?" Sirius asked stiffly.

"She came into Herbology with a scar on her face this morning. Do you know if she's alright?" She asked worriedly.

"Well, obviously if she was in Herbology, she's perfectly fine." Sirius muttered sarcastically.

"Well, she looked sick. I was just wondering-,"

"Look, I don't know, okay?! Why don't you go ask somebody else? I don't care!" Sirius said loudly. Several Hufflepuffs turned to look at them and Sirius glared back, making them turn away again. Andromeda was shocked and she recoiled away from him. When Sirius saw the look on his cousin's face, his anger and frustration melted away. "I'm…I'm sorry, Andromeda. I'm sorry I yelled at you."

Andromeda looked at Sirius with sympathetic eyes and pulled him into a gentle hug. Sirius hugged her back, feeling a little more relaxed. Sirius always seemed to feel better when Andromeda was around, and getting a hug from her relieved his stress for a few moments.

"It's alright, Sirius. I know it's stressful for you. You two seem close." Andromeda said quietly as she pulled back and looked at his slightly distraught face.

"I think we are," Sirius said earnestly. "She's a complicated person."

Andromeda nodded knowingly.

"I understand. What happened to her?" Andromeda asked. Sirius sighed and ran his hand through his long, black hair.

"I can't tell you, I'm sorry. She was…well, she was attacked. It's really complicated." Sirius' voice was strained with stress again. Andromeda nodded again.

"Is it something that could endanger the school?" she inquired.

"I don't know," Sirius said honestly. "It seems safe enough. I can't tell you much more than that."

"Alright. Is Ziva okay with what happened?" Andromeda asked. "She seemed out of it and her face…" her voice trailed off at the end.

Sirius flinched at the memories from that night when Ziva's face had bled heavily. He shuddered; Sirius couldn't stop having nightmares about it.

"I don't know. We haven't talked since it happened. She's been pretty busy working on school work and she sleeps a lot." Sirius told her.

"Well, just tell her that if she needs help catching up on anything, she can come to me. I have this week's notes if she's interested," Andromeda said kindly. Sirius gave her a closed-mouth smile and nodded. Andromeda stared at his tired face. "Maybe you should talk with her. I'm sure she needs a friend right now, Sirius."

"I know," Sirius swallowed. "It's just hard talking to her now. I feel like she doesn't want to talk with me at all."

"Well, Sirius, she probably doesn't want to talk to anyone, but she needs someone, especially after what happened to her. If she was attacked, she must be feeling scared."

"Yeah, she probably is." Sirius agreed with her, thinking about it.

"Just talk to her, Sirius. Be her friend. I'm sure you need her as much as she needs you." Andromeda said wisely.

The bell rang to signal the next class. Sirius thought about what she said and nodded to her. Andromeda gave him one last reassuring hug.

"Thanks, Andromeda." Sirius said thankfully. "I'm glad we talked. See you." he waved in farewell and was off to his next class.

Andromeda watched him go, but before she could go anywhere, she felt a tap on her shoulder. She turned around to see Ted Tonks standing there. Andromeda's face immediately split into a wide smile, seeing the blue eyed Hufflepuff boy with dark blonde hair with a little splash of bright blue in his bangs. Ted was a Metomorphagus, which was a very rare gift that some witches and wizards acquired. The person who has Metomorphagus can change their appearance. Ted loved to flaunt this any chance he could but sometimes it couldn't be helped – sometimes his hair changed color without him realizing it. Usually, his hair changed with his mood – he was trying to get help from Professor McGonagall for it, but Andromeda thought it was cute, so he decided to leave it the way it was.

Andromeda and Ted had been friends since their second year of Hogwarts. Her sisters, Bellatrix and Narsissa Black didn't know about this friendship and Andromeda was afraid to tell them because her family detested all Muggle-Borns (or 'Mudbloods' as they called them.) Andromeda hated them during her first year of Hogwarts, but after she met Ted and realized her family was wrong about hating them, she acquired the friendship with him. Although, as the years went by, Andromeda felt their relationship grow stronger and they both liked each other quite a lot. Andromeda was waiting for Ted to get his nerve up to ask her out on a date, and Ted was waiting for the right moment to ask. Both of them were very happy to just enjoy one another's company.

"Hey Andy," Ted greeted Andromeda by using what he called the 'clever' nickname for her.

Andromeda beamed at him. "Hey Ted, how are you?" she inquired kindly. Ted grinned.

"I'm spectacular! How about you?" he asked enthusiastically.

"I'm great," she smiled. "What are you doing up here? I thought you had Potions."

"I do. I was just wondering where you were." Ted said nonchalantly. Andromeda smiled at him.

"That's sweet of you. I was just talking to my cousin, Sirius." She told him.

"Ah, yes! How are he and Mr. Regulus?" Ted asked with genuine interest. Ted had been bullied by James and Sirius a couple of times in the past, so he wasn't fond of them, but he tolerated the bullying for Andromeda.

"Oh, Sirius is fine. I don't know about Regulus, though. I don't speak to him often." Andromeda said honestly. Ted nodded quickly, giving her a smile.

"Neither do I." Ted said.

Another bell rang, showing they had five minutes to get to class. Ted looked at her and smiled.

"May I escort you up to your class, Ms. Black?" Ted asked politely with a broad smile on his cheeky face, extending his arm. Andromeda looked at his arm and beamed, winding her own through his for the sixth time this week.

"You may, Mr. Tonks." Andromeda said flirtatiously, grinning. Ted grinned and together, they made their way upstairs.

Little did they know that Narsissa Black, Andromeda's sister, had been watching from around the corner. She stared after them with a disgusted look in her eyes. After a few moments of thought, an evil smirk graced her face. Narcissa decided to skip class to write an Owl to her mother and father, explaining the disgraceful thing she had just seen from her sister.

Classes ended as soon as they begun and soon, it was the end of the day. Ziva had had a very hard time concentrating. Her face and torso hurt very much and on top of that, everyone in her classes stared at her all period. She tried to ignore it, but she'd heard them whisper about her. She kept hearing 'She was so beautiful.' "Was"; She couldn't get that word out of her head. She didn't know quite what to think of it yet, either.

While she was walking back to the Ravenclaw Common Room, she saw Remus walking down the corridor, his head bowed. Just from being this far away from him, Ziva could feel the blanket of depression draping Remus. She hesitated before going up to him and tapping on his shoulder.

"Remus." She said quietly. When Remus turned to look at her, Ziva felt his emotions stronger than ever. His handsome face contorted when he saw her face and the scar again. He felt guilt flood through his body and he didn't want to look at her. He turned his face away. I did that, he thought, horrified. I did that to her.

"What do you want, Ziva?" Remus forced out. Ziva stared at him, feeling the hurt coming from him.

"I-I wanted to talk to you." Ziva said earnestly.

"Talk to me? Why? Why would you want to talk to me after what I did to you." Remus asked as he began walking again, avoiding her eyes. Ziva followed along beside him.

"You didn't do this, Remus. I'm not mad at you. I just want to see if you're okay. I'm worried about you-."

Ziva was cut off by a laugh. She looked over to see Remus chuckling and she blinked in confusion.

"_You_ are worried about _me_." Remus chortled. His laugh was dry and empty.

"Of course I am! I mean, I thought you'd want to talk about it. I am the one who knows why you keep running off every Full Moon." she said knowingly.

At the words 'Full Moon', Remus' laugh stopped dead in its tracks and it was replaced with an angry snarl.

"It was none of your business to try and figure anything out!" Remus said through gritted teeth.

"Well, I wouldn't have had to figure it out if you'd just told me!" exclaimed Ziva.

"Why do you even care?!" Remus growled.

"Because I am your friend!" she hissed. Remus froze, looking at her in surprise. "I am your friend, Remus! I want you to tell me things! I trusted you with my secret, and you didn't trust me with yours!"

"I didn't ask you to tell me your secret." Remus muttered under his breath.

"Well, I felt like I could trust you! You obviously didn't trust me enough." Ziva said annoyed.

"Because it could have put you in danger, and it did! You came to see what I was and I—_I did that_." Remus said, gesturing weakly to the large cut across her face, eyes turned to face the floor.

"Remus, you didn't do that! That wasn't you! That was a creature that didn't know its friends from its foes! You can't blame yourself for this." Ziva gestured to her face. Remus snuck a glance up at her and, all of a sudden, Ziva felt a new emotion fill him – hopeless guilt. The emotion was so strong that it made Ziva feel like she wanted to cry. The feeling was something that she'd never felt before – it was pure and simple: Remus felt suicidal.

"…I do." Remus told her honestly, his voice flat and lifeless. Ziva stared at Remus until he turned away and he made his way back to his Common Room, the feeling of suicide lingering inside Ziva.

Ziva felt like she'd been punched in the gut. Her eyes swam with tears while Remus' emotion affected her greatly, taking over her body. She leaned against the wall of the deserted corridor and sobbed quietly into her hands. Great heaving spasms of tears ripped painfully from her chest and she couldn't control them – by sensing what Remus had been feeling, Ziva felt all the effects of suicidal thoughts. The feeling was indescribable – the utter hopelessness and self-hatred that she felt was too overwhelming to comprehend. In that moment, Ziva realized just how horribly Remus Lupin felt because of something he couldn't control and she empathized with it, because she couldn't control her power either. Both felt hopeless, like nothing could be done in a situation like this, when in fact, it was precisely the exact opposite.


	12. Chapter 11

Chapter eleven: If only you knew

Severus Snape sat in the Slytherin Common Room, finishing his potions homework with ease. There were few left in the room when a group of Slytherins entered the doorway. There were 7 boys who entered and Snape recognized them all immediately – leading the group was Regulus Black and Lucius Malfoy, followed by Rodolphus Lestrange and Yaxley, and then coming up the back were Antonin Dolohov, Evan Rosier and that Avery boy, all of them chatting quietly. Many of the Slytherins fled when they entered, giving them the couches all to themselves. Most of the Slytherins were scared of them, and rightfully so – they called themselves the Death Eaters and were the most popular and intimidating Slytherins in the school. Severus thought it was an extremely daft name for their little gang, and found them to be quite pretentious.

Considering the other Slytherins fled that left him alone with the 7 boys, who didn't care enough to notice him. As they talked, Severus unconsciously listened in like he usually did when people were around.

"We have new information that we must discuss," Regulus called order to the group. Everyone went quiet and turned to look at him. Severus listened closely, shrouded in the darkness in the corner of the common room. He spoke again when everything was silent.

"As you know, the first Quidditch match of the season was postponed to later this month because they had to plant a dangerous tree on the grounds called the Whomping Willow. I don't know why they did that, but that doesn't matter – I have come across new information that you might all be interested in hearing."

"Does it involve Quidditch, Regulus?" Evan Rosier asked.

"Partially. It's part of the plan. Now, as you all know, my family is in possession of a locket which has been in the Black heritage for many years. However, I have just come across an interesting fact – apparently, the reason my family has it is because my mother had to hide it from Lord Voldemort."

Severus immediately jerked into a more attentive sitting position, his head snapping up as the group murmured in shock.

"Yes, I know, I know, settle down," Regulus instructed stiffly. Everyone quieted again. "According to Fenrir Greyback, the Dark Lord wants this locket desperately and he has asked us to get it for him. At the present time, my brother Sirius has the locket. This year, it was his turn to protect it. Each year, we switch off the locket and the two of us share the burden of protecting it. I have thought of asking him for the locket but my mother told us both that no matter what anyone says we must protect the locket for the entire year and make sure nobody takes it, not even someone else in our family, thus Sirius would not allow me to take it.

"However, I have devised a plan that will work in both our and Greyback's favour. Greyback wants one thing in return for the information about the locket: Remus Lupin. I assume you all know who he is." Regulus said.

There was more murmurs of agreement. Severus immediately saw Remus' face in his mind's eye.

"Well, Greyback wants him – he wouldn't tell me his reasons, but I can only imagine what he'd want him for, he is a talented wizard" Regulus admitted grudgingly, "However, we will not be able to get Remus to come with us willingly."

"Well, then, why not use force?" roared Dolohov from the couches. Some of the other Slytherins shouted in agreement.

"Because if we do that, we'll be expelled, you sodding bleeders!" Rodolphus yelled harshly over them. The shouting died down again.

"We have a plan set out," explained Regulus. "It is our job to make sure that plan goes through so that the Dark Lord gets what he wants, Greyback gets what he wants, we get in their good books and we don't get found out for it."

"This is where the Quidditch team comes in;" Lucius Malfoy cut in. "Regulus has made it so every one of you has a position on the Slytherin Quidditch team."

There were excited mutters from everyone in the room.

"Since the first match is against Gryffindor, and James Potter is their Captain, we'll have to make sure he gets a message. We'll injure one of his players so bad that he'll have to play one player short for the rest of the year until he finds a new one. But, during one of the next Quidditch games against Gryffindor, we need to hurt Potter enough that he's taken into the Hospital Wing. Then, the real plan begins."

Before any of them could speak, someone else entered the Common Room. Bellatrix and Narsissa Black strutted in, Bella looking mischievous as usual and Narsissa looking quite taken by Lucius' smile. Bellatrix went and sat on Rodolphus' lap while Narsissa went and took Lucius' hand.

"Any news, Bellatrix?" Regulus asked, looking at her as she gave Rodolphus a very passionate kiss before answering.

"We finally caught our sister in the act," chipped Bella, grinning around at all of them. Narsissa looked down at her and Lucius' conjoined hands and avoided eye contact. "Cissy contacted mummy and daddy and told them that Andromeda was being a bad little girl. We caught her with Ted Tonks."

The group in the room burst out laughing, gawfing at the very idea of any Pure Blood dating a Muggle-Born, let alone Ted Tonks. Bellatrix cackled with them until Regulus silenced them once again with a wave of his long hand.

"Did they respond?" Regulus asked, turning his attention to Narsissa. Narsissa quietly cleared her throat.

"Yes, they responded to Yaxley and I," She said. Yaxley looked very proud at whatever the plan consisted of. "Everything is in order – all that's left is waiting for her to get the letter. I'll know when she does and keep you updated." Narsissa continued. Regulus gave her a slight nod of thanks and turned back to the others.

"You see, by upsetting Andromeda, we'll upset Sirius Black."

Bellatrix and a few others snarled in disgust, muttering words like 'Blood-Traitor' and 'Gryffindor scum.'

"The main course of action that we must take is to uproot that little group of friends; for if one falls, the others will fall with them," Regulus told everyone. He looked around at them all seriously. "My friends, if we do this properly and this plan is followed precisely we will succeed and we will all get what we want. Everyone has to focus and make sure that no one shall know of this plan. Does everyone understand?"

Everyone in that room, except Severus, nodded. Regulus shook each of their hands before they all departed out of the Common Room, leaving Severus alone, still unseen in the darkness.

Everybody knew how much Severus hated James and his gang. They'd been bullying him since their First Year at Hogwarts. Severus, therefore, saw no reason to warn James and his gang about the Death Eater's plans. However, Severus knew that Lily was often harassed by Potter and his friends and he wanted to make sure that she was safe. If she was hurt because he withheld information from her, he'd never forgive himself.

Severus got up from his chair and left the Common Room. He began traveling to his and Lily's special spot. They met there every night at 6:00. He wandered just outside of school property and saw their tree, which was huge. It was planted right across from the monstrous Whomping Willow tree, which was completely still for the moment. Severus gave it a look before he wandered over to his tree, ducking under the hanging branches which completely shielded him from view. He saw Lily there, her Herbology textbook open and a tiny potted Tentacular plant in front of her. The vines wriggled around eerily, the pods making snapping noises as they did so. Lily had a deep look of concentration on her face as she read the textbook. She sighed in exasperation as she tried to pour a gold-colored solution onto the plant. The vines whipped around even faster and one cut her on the cheek. She leaned away from the plant, glaring at it harshly.

"Bloody useless thing," she muttered under her breath as she held her bleeding cheek. "How am I supposed to raise the thing if I can't even feed it?"

Severus immediately went over and sat by her side and took out his wand. He gently took her hand off her cheek and rested the tip of his wand on the cut.

"_Valnerum Sanentu." _Severus said quietly. The cut immediately healed up, new skin forming over the injury, making it seem like it was never there in the first place. When Severus pulled his wand away, Lily gently touched her newly mended cheek with a smile on her face.

"Thank you, Severus." Lily said. Severus gave her a small-mouthed smile.

"My pleasure. You know, Tentacular plants hate that stuff." He gestured to the vial of golden liquid, which was Buddlejuice.

"But Professor Sprout said-,"

"I know what she says, but it's wrong," Severus said easily. He took out a tiny bottle of Lacewing flies from his cloak and uncorked it. He fed each flailing pod a fly and the entire plant seemed to calm down immediately, shivering with comfort and then wriggling into the pot, disappearing beneath the soil. Lily watched in amazement and Severus grinned, handing her over the bottle. "Feed it twice a day and it should grow as big as this tree." Severus said, looking up at the dangling branches of the tree above them.

Lily stowed the Lacewing flies away in her Herbology trunk, which was about the size of a small toaster, still looking gobsmacked.

"Lacewing flies. Only you would have thought of that, Severus." Lily said fondly, smiling as she latched the trunk shut, putting the Tentacular pot on top of it and then leaning against the tree. "Who knew being a potions genius would pay off in Herbology?"

Severus's pale, taunt cheeks went red.

"I'm not a genius," Severus muttered. "I'm just-,"

"The best in our potions class." Lily cut in. Severus gave her a look.

"Actually, I'm second best. That freak beat me in our last exam. She got perfect and I got off by half a mark." Severus said with an almost embarrassed tone. Lily knew he was talking about Ziva – nobody else could be 'that freak.' She'd been hearing that nickname more now than ever.

"Severus," she reprimanded him, giving him a look. Severus sighed.

"C'mon, Lily, you know she's not normal. She's a prodigy in every way possible! No one should be that smart." Severus said, looking distracted. Lily gave him a look.

"What do you have against Ziva?" Lily asked him.

"Ziva?"

"Yeah, that's her name," Lily said. "Did she do anything to you?"

"Other than steal my potions title? No, she did nothing. She just…she creeps me out." Severus said quietly.

"How? She is the least creepy person I know." Lily said indignantly.

"It's her eyes," Severus explained, picturing her light blue eyes. "It's like she knows what I'm thinking. It's not normal."

"Oh, please," Lily shouted, laughing. "That's ridiculous. I think you're paranoid."

"I am _not."_

"I think so." Lily said smugly. Severus felt frustrated, but he saw she was just pushing his buttons, so he sighed in surrender.

"So, is that plant your mid-term experiment or something?" Severus asked, pointing to the Tentacular pot again.

Lily nodded.

"Kind of. It's the last assignment for 'Potted plants and potions.' Apparently the content of a Tentacular plant helps a lot in certain potions." Lily said knowingly.

"Of course. You can't make a Limb-linking potion without them. Plus, I heard their leaves are very valuable too. I'm surprised Professor Sprout hasn't been selling them in Diagon Alley." Severus said, looking at the pot.

"Well, I doubt she has a bad bone in her body." Lily said.

"You assume way too much of people, Lily." Severus told her, crossing his legs. Lily shot him a look.

"That's not a bad thing."

"It is when you're let down after people show their real colors. People are never what they seem to be. Sometimes the façade is the less dangerous part of a person."

Lily looked at Severus' pale face curiously.

"We aren't talking about Professor Sprout anymore, are we?" Lily said timidly. Severus avoided eye contact.

"Look, I just don't want you to get hurt." He mumbled to her, twisting his long hands nervously.

Lily smiled, leaned forward and kissed Severus' bony cheek. Severus felt his entire body tingle with warmth at the touch of her lips against his skin.

"You're very kind, Severus, and I know you worry all too much about me, but I can take care of myself too. I'm not a China Doll, you know." Lily smiled. Severus gave a timid smile back, the spot where she kissed him very hot.

"I know. It's just, Potter worries me. You shouldn't hang around him." Severus said, his tone turning slightly sour. Lily's face changed again – her smile faded into a look of understanding.

"I don't hang around James Potter, Severus. I avoid him at all cost." Lily said.

"Well he fancies you." Severus blurted before he could stop himself. Lily's face flinched at the word 'fancies', as if hearing it from him made it real.

"Severus-," Lily tried.

"And we all know that James Potter always gets what he wants," Severus mumbled, his voice harsh with anger. "No matter what, he always gets what he wants, and it's not fair, because he's a spoilt piece of sh-,"

"Severus!" Lily took one of his hands to provide emphasis to her words. "Look at me."

He obeyed hesitantly, his black eyes staring into her green eyes. She looked so utterly serious and sincere.

"You're talking about me like I'm an inanimate object that can't fend for itself. Severus, he might want me, but he will never have me. I am one thing he can't win. I'm not a Quidditch Trophy."

"Well, he treats you like one." Severus objected, looking at her.

"I know, Severus, I know. Just please trust me that I will never give into him. He thinks he can charm any girl, but he can't charm me."

"You say that now."

"And I'll continue saying it," Lily told him. "Just you wait and see, Severus. I'm stronger than you think I am. I'll never let him win me over."

Severus gave her a look, his black eyebrow raised.

"…Do you promise?" Severus asked.

"I promise." Lily said earnestly, her eyes on his.

Severus looked for any trace of a lie on her face.

"Do you promise enough to make an Unbreakable Vow?" Severus asked her. Lily blinked in a confused sort of way.

"You should trust me enough to not need to make an Unbreakable Vow." Said Lily.

"Well, it couldn't hurt, could it?" Severus asked. Lily shrugged, making Severus' gut fall a little in his body.

"I just don't think it's necessary, that's all. Besides, Shakespeare once wrote 'Do not make vows, for vows are for a cowardly tongue."

Severus thought about that and nodded.

"Very well," Severus agreed. "Thank you for promising anyway."

Lily gave him a smile and then got up, checking her watch.

"I should go inside and finish my homework. I'll talk to you tomorrow, Severus," Lily leaned down and kissed his cheek once more. "And thank you for caring, Severus. You're like the big brother I never had." Lily beamed down at him and then walked back towards the castle.

Severus watched her walk away with a smile, but it faded when she was out of view. Her last words hung in his head.

_Thank you for caring, Severus. You're like the brother I never had._

_If only you knew,_ Severus thought. For only he knew, in the deepest, darkest part of himself, that he loved Lily Evans, and he knew that love would never go away. He wanted to be more than a brother to her. He wanted to love her in ways that no person could ever love her. She made him better and, to be perfectly honest, he made her better too. Severus wanted to tell her so badly, but he was afraid of rejection and her last words to him made telling her that much more difficult.

_You're like the brother I never had._

_ You're like a brother._

_If only you knew,_ Severus thought as the sun set behind Hogwarts. _If only you knew._


	13. Chapter 12

****Chapter twelve: Trying times and tryouts

_Dearest Andromeda,_

_Your father and I hope you are doing well and keeping up with your schoolwork. As we understand it, there have been many distractions at Hogwarts in these present weeks, but we're certain you can overcome those tempting obstacles._

_ Also, your father and I have been discussing what you will be doing after you have graduated Hogwarts. I know we talked about becoming a Ministry wizard, but I believe that we have found something that will fulfill your needs better in the future._

_ We have been talking to the Connelly family of late, and we decided to make an agreement, for they have been worrying about what their son will do after his seven years of Hogwarts are over. We have decided that, after you both graduate, you and Yaxley Connelly will be wed. Isn't it exciting, my flower? You remember Yaxley, don't you? Well, of course you must! You two grew up together. The Connelly family have dreamed of joining our family for many generations, but we haven't had the opportunity before now. It is just wonderful that we will finally be able to have relations from one of the highest Pureblood families that has ever existed! _

_ Furthermore, Andromeda, dear, your father and I ask that you begin seeing Yaxley during your last years at Hogwarts, for someday he will be your husband and it's better to know a little bit about each other before you marry. If you are seeing anyone else, we expect you to stop that friendship and focus on your future, which lies with Yaxley Connelly. Also, make sure to keep in touch with your sisters, for they are very worried for you at this moment and make sure to keep this betrothal to yourself._

_ We hope to hear from you soon, dear, and your father sends his regards. Keep out of trouble, Andromeda._

_ Sincerely, your mother, Druella._

The letter fumbled from Andromeda's shaking fingers and fell onto the floor of the Ravenclaw girls' dormitory. Two weeks had passed at Hogwarts, and everything had been going swimmingly up until now. It was right after classes when Andromeda saw the family owl (he was black with red eyes) and saw a letter addressed to her on the leg of the bird. She never imagined, however, that this would come out of that letter.

Andromeda, get _married?!_To _Yaxley?! _There had to be some sort of mistake. Her parents wouldn't make her do that! Why would she have to do that? Why not Narsissa? She's the oldest in the family, why couldn't she marry that scumbag?! Why was she being pressured into this?

And Ted – at the thought of not being able to see Teddy anymore, Andromeda felt like she was falling down a dark hole. She couldn't stop seeing Teddy, she couldn't. He was the most important person in her life, he was her best friend and now, Andromeda was thinking of Ted as more than a friend these days. It was mutual, of course, but how was she going to tell Ted that she couldn't see him anymore?

The letter laid on the floor, looking completely innocent, even if its contents sealed Andromeda's fate. The shock of the moment forced her to take a seat on her bed, her entire form trembling. Her eyes seem to glaze over like a hazy fog, the tingling of withheld tears clouding her vision. Her entire life seemed to be falling apart and all because of one single letter and a decision her parents made. Her destiny was set in stone – she would never go on to be a successful businesswoman like she planned. She'd go on to be the housemaid/wife/mother of Yaxley's children and, seeing as Andromeda always knew him for being a very controlling person, she'd probably do little other.

The door to the Ravenclaw Common Room creaked open – the sound made Andromeda snap out of her shocked façade as she swivelled around to see who was coming inside. To her surprise, she saw Ziva standing at the door, looking worn and tired until she saw Andromeda. Ziva immediately felt a title wave of emotion from Andromeda, making it almost over powering to be in the same room with her. Ziva stood frozen in the doorway, seeing how distraught she was physically and feeling it emotionally. She'd felt this feeling from one other person: her mother on the night her father died – desperate hopelessness.

Ziva stepped hesitantly into the room, her arms full of books.

"Hello." Ziva greeted Andromeda.

Andromeda quickly blinked back her tears and wiped the rest away with the sleeve of her sweater.

"Hi." Andromeda said formally. Ziva kept her distance, feeling the sorrow being masked by her civil attitude.

"Are you okay?" Ziva asked her quietly.

Andromeda stared at Ziva for a moment – she never expected anyone like Ziva to talk to her, especially after walking in on her having an emotional breakdown. Andromeda thought Ziva was very strange and had never struck up a conversation with her before due to a fear of her personality. Ziva was one of the smartest people in their year and she was a very intimidating person to be around when she was in a classroom. Most of the time, Andromeda tried her hardest to avoid a conversation with Ziva because she was scared of what she might say, and for some reason, when Ziva asked 'Are you okay?' Andromeda felt obligated to answer her truthfully. It felt as though she knew how she was really feeling before she even asked the question.

"…I'm alright," Andromeda finally said. "I'm just stressed."

Without thinking, Ziva looked down at the letter on the floor, which was lying between the two of them. Ziva didn't read it, not wanting to invade her privacy, but she knew automatically that the letter was somehow connected to the emotions she was getting from Andromeda.

"That letter – there's something pretty bad on it, isn't there?" Ziva said.

Andromeda felt a pang of pain twinge in her stomach, making the back of her eyes tingle with tears again. She blinked them back, embarrassed that she was crying in front of a stranger.

"Y-Yes." Andromeda said shakily, twisting her hands in knots.

Ziva gave her a very empathetic look.

"Would you like to talk about it?" Ziva inquired.

Andromeda looked back up at her, her eyes filled with tears.

"W-With you?"

"Yes," Ziva said with a kind smile. "I've been told I'm a good listener."

For some odd reason that Andromeda couldn't explain, she felt like she trusted Ziva, even though she knew she didn't. She felt confused, but she somehow also felt calmer when she was in the room. It was like Ziva's presence alone calmed her down considerably.

"…Well, if you don't mind listening to me whine and complain, sure." Andromeda tried to joke, making the conversation light.

Ziva gave her a smile that made Andromeda relax a bit more.

"Of course not, I love listening to people whine. May I sit?" Ziva asked, gesturing to the spot beside Andromeda on her canopy bed. Andromeda nodded quickly.

Ziva traveled over to her, pausing only to pick up the letter. She sat beside her and stared directly at her. Andromeda found her blue eyes mesmerising.

"So, what in this letter is making you upset?" Ziva asked Andromeda gently.

"Oh, my parents are being ridiculous," Andromeda said in a flustered manner. "They basically told me that my life is going to be how they planned it. I guess I wasn't ready to accept that yet."

"Nobody is ready to accept the fact that their fate isn't in their own hands," Ziva told her quietly. "You can't prepare for something like that."

Andromeda stared at Ziva's face for a moment.

"It sounds like you're speaking from experience as well." She stated. Ziva lifted her shoulders in a shrug.

"Yeah, a little. It might sound odd, but I've had the same problem you've just encountered since my birth. My life has been set out for me in every single way possible, and if I stray from that set plan they have given me, I will be punished." Ziva explained.

"So, what do you suggest I do?" Andromeda asked her, intrigued by how she was answering her so easily.

"Well, that is entirely up to you. You can do what your parents have set out for you, obey them, and make them happy – or, you can disobey them, do the complete opposite and make yourself happy."

"How do I choose?" Andromeda inquired.

Ziva shrugged.

"That depends. Do you care more about making your parents happy, or making yourself happy?" Ziva asked her.

"That's what I'm having trouble deciding!" exclaimed Andromeda. "If I disobey my parents, I will be punished, like you said, and if I decide to do what my parents want, I'll be miserable for the rest of my life."

Ziva nodded understandingly and looked at Andromeda with wise eyes.

"Well, ask yourself this," Ziva urged. "What is the one thing that your parents are denying you?"

Andromeda's thoughts immediately gravitated towards Ted Tonks. She wanted to be with him more than anything.

"Now, ask yourself: does this thing or person make you happy?" Ziva asked. Andromeda nodded, thinking about all the times she and Ted spent together, laughing and talking.

"Alright, now think of this: what would life be like if that person or thing continued to stay in your life?"

Andromeda imagined Ted and her getting married, or staying together as long as they like. She imagined them growing old together, watching their children and grandchildren grow up under their care. Her face split into a smile.

"It would be perfect." She answered. Ziva nodded and continued.

"Okay, and think about this: what would life be like without this thing or person?"

Andromeda's throat swelled at the thought. She imagined never seeing Ted again, never seeing his smile or hearing his laugh again. She imagined being wife to Yaxley, mothering his horrible children and spending the rest of her life in another man's shadow. She imagined her entire life crumbling into nothing but the jobs of a housewife. The tears threatened to come back as she answered, her voice thick with crying.

"It would be terrible." She whispered brokenly. Ziva nodded again.

"Alright. So, the last question you must ask yourself is: are you ready to give that thing or person up for the wishes of your parents?" she asked.

Andromeda pondered that as Ziva shrugged.

"Look, it's definitely going to be difficult – there's no way around that. But if you really want the life you seek, you have to fight for it." Ziva told her.

Andromeda nodded. Everything seemed clearer than she ever thought possible. She looked at Ziva.

"Thank you, Ziva, for listening to me," Andromeda said kindly. "You've helped me immensely."

Ziva gave her a smile.

"It was my pleasure." Ziva picked up her books and gave her one last smile before heading for the door. Just before she left, however, a question popped into Andromeda's head.

"Ziva?" Andromeda called. Ziva turned back around. "Are you going to take your own advice?"

"Pardon?" Ziva asked confusedly.

"Will you fight for the life you seek?" Andromeda inquired.

There was a long, dragging silence in which Ziva's smile faded and was replaced by an almost pained, thoughtful expression. Andromeda could see the turmoil behind her scarred face. Ziva remembered Sirius' face in her memory, Remus' face, and the face of her mother, which she hadn't been talking to.

"…I might." Ziva said finally, her voice quiet and steady. Andromeda nodded.

"It was lovely to meet you, Ziva." Andromeda told her with a smile. Ziva pushed aside the memories in her mind and forced a smile.

"It was lovely to meet you too, Andromeda."

Andromeda watched as Ziva left the dorm room. She herself may have left, but her thought-provoking words stuck with Andromeda for the remainder of the evening.

"Welcome to the Gryffindor Quidditch Tryouts!"

James Potter stood on the Quidditch field with his Foxfiend in front of all the Gryffindors trying out. He was dressed in his Quidditch uniform with his Captain badge shining on his chest. There were more than twenty people wanting to try out, which included Sirius Black and Peter Pettigrew.

"Today we will be doing a series of runs for each position. If you are trying out for Chaser, I want to see how well you fly, your agility, your ability to control the Quaffle and your reflexes. If you're trying out for Seeker, I want to see your agility, reflexes and flying strategy. For Keeper, I want to see your reflexes, your blocking and passing techniques, and finally, for Beaters, I want to see the strength you put behind your bat, your aim and your accuracy." James told the crowd.

Now, James Potter might be slightly thick at some things, but he knew Quidditch back-to-front. He knew every play, every move, every single part of the game made known to Wizard kind. He was a fanatic. He loved Quidditch more than anything in the world. The amount of intelligence he had on the subject of Quidditch was ridiculously large, and no one dared question him on anything that had to do with the game. James was taking tryouts very seriously, and so was everyone trying out.

"Alright, then, ladies and gents! Grab your brooms and let's get flying!" James shouted. He mounted his Foxfiend and took off. The others chatted excitedly as they scurried to grab their brooms. Peter looked like he was about to wet himself as he grabbed his rickety old broom and made sure it was ready to go. Sirius pulled on his gloves and picked up his Beater bat. It had been his dads and was passed on to him. He was trying out for the Beater position and was determined to get it.

"I have a good feeling about this year!" Peter announced to Sirius as the others mounted and took off. Sirius gave him a smirk.

"You mean like the other two years you had a good feeling?" Sirius asked him. Peter kept his hopes up.

"Well, you see, I had a lot of time to practise this summer. I would fly around my backyard and try to pass a ball to invisible team mates. I've been practising agility and reflexes and-,"

"Peter, I don't think it's your agility that you've got to worry about." Sirius said, eyeing Peter's ever-growing mid-section. Peter blushed and smoothed his hand over his Quidditch sweater as Sirius mounted his broom and took off. He followed shortly thereafter.

Soon, everyone was in the air and tryouts had begun. James started with a speed test, having four Seeker hopefuls ride against each other in a race. Once the Seekers had gone and James had written down certain people's strengths and weaknesses, he moved on to the Keepers who he would throw the Quaffle at and see who could block his trick shots. When no one but a girl named Leanne managed to knock the Quaffle aside with some precision, James moved on to the Beaters, who lined up in the sky. Their exercise was to hit as many Bludgers into the floating pumpkin heads as possible.

The first few Beater hopefuls hit 4 or 5 out of the 10 pumpkin heads and James crossed them off the list. When it finally came time for Sirius's turn, he flew up to the targets and took aim as the Bludger flew at him. He wound up, took aim and smacked the Bludger as hard as he could. It smacked right into the pumpkin head, sending it smashing to pieces. He continued to do the same with every other head, destroying all 10 of them. However, on the last head, he hit the Bludger so hard that it smashed through the pumpkin, down out of the air and straight into the commentator's box, blowing the entire podium to pieces, sending shards of wood in every direction. Several people gasped and shielded their faces. James managed a tiny grin.

"Nice work, Black!" he called to Sirius who had a devilish grin on his face. "I wouldn't want to be that commentator. Well done. Oh, and fix that podium for me, would you? McGonagall would have my head if she saw that."

Sirius beamed and whizzed over to repair the broken podium.

Last, but not least, were the Chasers. James had them go through a series of flying and throwing drills before he made them really work.

"Alright, ladies and gentlemen! I want you to get the Quaffle in one of the rings at high speed." James told them. All of the Chaser tryouts (including Peter) exchanged shocked and nervous glances, whispering to one another. Flying full-pelt towards the rings was dangerous, especially for inexperienced flyers. Not to mention they had to aim, get it in one of the rings, and pull off before they collide with the ring's poles. "Unless you have any objections." Added James a moment later after the whispering died down.

Pale and shaking, each Chaser got on their broom and took turns going to the back of the pitch and flying at the highest speed towards the opposite goal posts. A few of them managed to sloppily get the Quaffle in one of the hoops and the rest missed because they pulled out too early. James put check marks beside the names who managed to get it in and X's beside the ones who couldn't. He couldn't afford to have scared Chasers on his team.

Finally, came Peters turn. Peter climbed clumsily onto his broomstick and flew off to the end of the pitch. He muttered words of encouragement to himself as he turned sloppily with the Quaffle in hand. He stared determinedly towards the rings on the opposite side of the pitch and then took off flying. He built up speed quickly, whizzing towards the rings. His heart raced and, as they got close enough, Peter chucked the Quaffle in the top ring. Surprisingly, and to his delight, he got it in. Peter smiled brightly to himself but was too distracted to pull out of his full-speed pursuit of the rings. Peter saw he was going to collide, but when he tried to stop his broom, his bodyweight carried it forward.

With an almighty crash, Peter collided head on with the ring he just threw the Quaffle in and flew off his broom through the center of the ring. The entire crowd of tryouts gasped as his large body fell heavily to the ground with a loud _thump! _

James stared wide-eyed for a moment as people rushed over to see if he was alright. James followed, Sirius not far behind.

"Move, give him some air!" someone shouted. James pushed through the crowd and saw Peter on the ground, clutching his shoulder. His arm was bent in a way it shouldn't bend and he was as pale as a ghost. His breathing was coming up in short, bursting sobs and his watery blue eyes were more watery than usual.

"Peter, are you alright? Someone grab the nurse!" hollered James. A young tryout sped off towards the castle as James turned his attention back to Peter, who seemed to have sucked it up a bit.

"I-I think my arms broken." Peter wined, his teeth clenched. James nodded and Sirius looked at him.

"It'll be alright, mate. The nurse will fix it up in a heartbeat." Sirius said supportively. Peter nodded painfully, looking almost glad for the attention. Peter turned his round face up at James.

"Does this mean I don't make the team, James?" Peter asked him in a brittle voice. James hesitated as the boy came running back with the head nurse doddling along in his wake.

"Now's not the time to talk about it, Peter." James mumbled. The nurse came over and quickly assessed Peter before helping him up. Sirius helped support Peter's weight and they carried him off the pitch.

The rest of the tryouts began muttering amongst themselves anxiously. James cleared his throat and turned back to them.

"Alright, Quidditch Tryouts are over! You may all go. Expect the list to be posted in a few days." James told them all. The crowd slowly dispersed, people going their separate ways. When everyone was gone, James looked down at his clipboard and looked at the Chaser names. He swallowed hard, his quill hesitating over the page. Then, he set his quill down and crossed out the last name on the page – Peter Pettigrew.


	14. Chapter 13

Chapter thirteen: Animagus

Remus was informed that Peter had hurt himself during Quidditch practise the following morning by James. Sirius, who still wasn't talking to him, was too busy concerning himself with befriending Ziva. Ziva was laying it low for the past couple weeks, and for due reason. Many of the students were picking on her, saying how ugly she'd gotten because of the scar. She tried not to let it get to her, but it was difficult.

After classes, Remus, Sirius and James went to go visit Peter, who was held in the Hospital Wing overnight. They saw that he was sitting up and reading his Transfiguration textbook with his arm in a sling. When Peter spotted them, he beamed.

"Hey guys!" he said enthusiastically.

"Hey Peter," Remus said with a smile. "How are you feeling?"

"Oh, I'm fine! My arm hurts a little still, but I feel a lot better from yesterday." Said Peter as the three boys sat down on chairs at his bedside.

"Well, it was certainly a sight," Sirius told him. "You flew pretty well, and the Quaffle went right in!"

Peter's smile grew bigger.

"I heard it was a great accomplishment." Remus added, smiling. Peter smiled and looked at James, who gave a forced smile.

"Now, obviously we can't discuss Quidditch tryouts because we have the Captain in our presence," Sirius said with a grin, nudging James with his elbow. "However, can you give us hints, mate?"

James shifted his weight awkwardly in his seat, avoiding eye contact.

"You both did very well." He said simply, keeping it short. Sirius raised an eyebrow.

"Well? Just well? I thought it'd be something more elaborate." Sirius said.

"I can't say the results of the tryouts. They'll be posted on Monday." James replied stiffly. Sirius and Peter exchanged looks as their smiles melted off their faces. Before anyone could say anything, the Hospital Wing doors opened and in strode Professor McGonagall, looking as stern as ever. She went right over to the three boys after checking that nobody was listening.

"Hello Professor." greeted Remus.

"Hello Mr. Lupin. If I may have a word with the four of you quickly. I know Mr. Pettigrew must rest up." McGonagall said crisply. The four boys nodded.

"What is it, Professor?" Sirius asked.

"Yeah, this isn't about the tryouts is it? I swear I didn't mean to hurt anyone!" James said.

"And I didn't mean to break the commentator's box!" Sirius said. McGonagall stared at them with wide, spectacled eyes.

"You broke what, Mr. Black?" she said. Sirius realized she didn't know about that and shrunk back.

"Never mind, sorry Professor." Sirius muttered. McGonagall looked as though she was praying for patients as she turned back to James.

"As a matter of fact, this has nothing to do with injuries at the tryouts or what may or may not have broken during them," she shot Sirius a glance before continuing. "In fact, this has to do with you, Mr. Lupin."

Three pairs of eyes turned to look at Remus, who froze in his seat. McGonagall checked over her shoulder once more.

"Now all three of you now no Mr. Lupin's…condition," McGonagall said. Remus winced. "And because you know about it, there are precautions we must take in order to keep this unknown to the rest of the school body. Is that understood?"

The four of them nodded.

"Very well. Now, Professor Dumbledore had the idea that would be harmless to everyone involved. He has suggested that I allow the three of you-," she nodded towards Sirius, James and Peter. "-to register to be an Animagus.'

James and Sirius exchanged looks of excitement while Peter looked lost. Remus kept his eyes down.

"Sorry, Professor, what is an Animagus?" Peter asked.

"It's when a wizard can transform into an animal at will," McGonagall explained. "By doing this during the transformations Mr. Lupin has to endure, you will become animals so you can interact with them."

"I'm sorry, Professor, maybe I'm not understanding," interrupted Remus. "But how exactly is this going to benefit anyone involved? It seems exceptionally dangerous to me."

"It did to me as well, let me assure you Mr. Lupin," McGonagall told him. "However, Professor Dumbledore explained it to me. While in animal form, they will be perfectly safe because while you are in werewolf form, you won't feel threatened by them. By becoming animals, all three of you will be able to stay with Mr. Lupin during his transformation. This helps us by knowing exactly where Mr. Lupin has been and whether he is injured or not, and also it helps you by getting a piece of mind while your friend is out." she explained.

Everyone seemed to love this idea except Remus.

"But, Professor, surely you wouldn't allow students out of bed after hours." He objected.

"Well, we have set a time limit. Once the sun goes down and you transform, they will stay with you for three hours until about 11:00. I expect you all stay up that late anyway."

They all shrugged sheepishly so McGonagall knew she was right.

"It is ultimately up to you," she said. "If you would like to go through with the idea, we will give you an Animagus immediately. However, if you do not wish to, we will respect that and we will find a safer way of handling Mr. Lupin's condition."

"Well, I think its brilliant." Said Peter enthusiastically.

"Bloody brilliant!" said James, grinning.

"I'm in." said Sirius from his seat. He wasn't keen on hanging out with Remus right now, but he did want the ability to change into an animal. Who knows? Maybe he could sneak out of his house this summer without knowing.

"I'm not," said Remus firmly. All of them, even McGonagall turned to look at him. "This isn't wise. What if it affects their schoolwork or their sleep patterns?

"We're up that late anyways, mate," said James smugly. "Might as well put it to good use."

"Yeah, besides, an Animagus sounds awesome." Said Sirius.

"Don't worry, Remus, we'll be fine! We'll have a fantastic time!" Peter said happily. Remus still looked hesitant but McGonagall kept talking.

"Very well. Professor Dumbledore will have a meeting with the three of you tomorrow evening after class so you can acquire your Animagus. Mr. Lupin, you'd better come too – I think Professor Dumbledore might want a word with you alone." She told him. Remus nodded obediently. "Now, I want to tell you that this has to remain strictly confidential. When you are able to transform you're your Animagi, you need to remember to do it only in the eyes of either Professor Dumbledore, either four of you or me. No foolish behaviour with this. Am I understood?"

The four of them nodded. With that, Professor McGonagall bid them all goodnight and swept off out of the Hospital wing. When she was gone, an eruption of talking burst from James and Peter.

"This is going to be the coolest thing ever! Can you imagine me turning into an animal?" James asked wildly, grinning broadly.

"I'm so excited! This is going to be amazing!" Peter exclaimed. Sirius somehow made eye contact with Remus and they exchanged a brief look which sent Sirius on defensive. He stood up, grabbing his bag.

"See you." he muttered to the others, who weren't listening. He walked out of the Hospital wing, leaving a confused Remus with two ecstatic teenagers babbling in his wake.


	15. Chapter 14

Chapter fourteen: Meetings and a message

"Now, as you stare into the crystal ball, let your logical mind drift into your subconscious and think about what you would see. Your futures will only appear when your Inner Eye has made itself present to you. Only then will you realize what or who is your future." Mr. Limmer said to his Divination class.

Ziva and Remus sat together at the tiny table, a large crystal ball between them on its stand. Remus watched tiredly as the white smoke curled in on itself inside the glass. He thought this was absolute rubbish.

"Now, gaze into the crystal ball and tell your partner what you see…" Mr. Limmer instructed.

Ziva and Remus made brief eye contact before looking into the crystal ball. Ziva was the first to speak.

"This is ridiculous," Ziva said. "How does he expect to see anything in this white smoke? Is this some kind of matchmaking class? Really – 'Only then will you realize what or _who_ is your future.'"

Without speaking, Remus shrugged, keeping his eyes on the ball. Ziva felt awkward and shifted her gaze to his face. He still refused to look at her.

"So…uh, do you see anything? Or anyone?" she asked him. Remus kept staring at the ball. He tried to concentrate so she would stop talking.

"Not really. You?" Remus mumbled.

Ziva sighed. He'd been like this since the incident in the corridor. She was tired of it. She turned her gaze on the crystal ball and focused on it. Her eyes fixated on the smoke swirling patterns. Just then, she saw a face emerging from the smoke. It curled into Sirius's face. He smiled at Ziva, gave her a wink, and disappeared. Ziva's eyes widened and her mouth hung open a little. Why would Sirius be a part of her future? She shook it off because Remus glanced at her and gave her a look of confusion.

"Uh…no." she lied quietly. Remus nodded. He directed his attention back on the ball and focused on the smoke as she did. However, instead of just seeing the smoke, a face emerged from it. Black hair began to form and big blue eyes…familiar blue eyes…then a pale, scarred face: it was Ziva. She smiled beautifully and then her face disappeared back into smoke. Remus felt himself go warm. Ziva? A part of his future? How did that work?

"Something wrong, Remus?" Ziva asked, seeing the look he had on his face.

Remus shook it off as well.

"No, of course not." he muttered. The bell rang.

"Alright class, I want three rolls of parchment on what you saw and why you think you saw it in your future handed into me by tomorrow." Limmer announced as all of the students got up and walked out. Ziva grabbed her textbook and quill and left before Remus could say anything to her. Remus left also, the crystal ball on his mind.

During lunch, Sirius opened the only letter his mother sent to him since he left. As usual, he didn't want to read anything his mother sent to him but since Regulus had given it to him earlier that day, he had to read it. Sirius listened to James and Peter talk about Potions while Remus read his book. He quickly tore open the letter which was addressed '_Give this to Sirius' _on the front. He pulled out the letter and saw his mother's spiny handwriting. It was a very short letter.

_Sirius,_

_Your brother told me about your incident with the locket. Regulus told me that he was worried you might try to get rid of it. DON'T. Regulus is still watching you and will check to see if the locket is still on your person. Behave and mind your temper! I do not want to hear such rumors about you again, Sirius. You have already brought misfortune to this family. Don't defile our name any more than you already have._

_ Sincerely, your mother, Walburga Black_

_Descendent of the most Noble House of Black _

Sirius felt his blood boil hot in his veins. His hands shook with anger and he clenched his jaw. The paper that was in his hand crumpled when he closed it in a fist and he got up swiftly from the table, striding out of the Great Hall, ignoring Peter and James's calls of confusion. He kept his glaring eyes ahead of him, trying to keep calm until he could go somewhere to release his anger. However, he was barely outside the doors of the Great Hall when he bumped into Ziva, who was just coming for lunch. As soon as he hit her with his body, Ziva bounced backwards and looked up at him with confused eyes. All of his anger and frustration leaked into her body and she tried to keep her face neutral. His face, however, was terrifying to look at.

"Sirius?" she said, slightly choked with emotion. Sirius looked up at her and then tried to step around her, but she blocked his way. "Sirius, what's going on?"

"Let me go." Sirius hissed through clenched teeth. He could feel the locket's metallic heart beating through his shirt, against his chest.

"No. You need to tell me why you're so angry." Ziva objected, looking up at him with fury in her eyes. Of course, in any other circumstance, she would have been calm and kind to him, but the transfer of his emotions was taking a toll on her.

"Why? It doesn't matter." Sirius growled, his jaw tight.

"It matters to me." Ziva told him earnestly.

"_Well, it SHOULDN'T!" _Sirius's voice echoed off the walls. Many people around them turned to see what was going on, their faces shocked. He took a deep, calming breath – he felt like he was going to burst.

That's when Ziva grabbed his arm and, with surprising forced, dragged him out of Hogwarts and to a deserted spot right outside of the Quidditch Pitch where Sirius had gone when he was angry at Remus in the Hospital Wing. She pushed him up against a tree forcefully, her eyes flaring with anger.

"What is going _on_ with you?" she snarled, her temper also rising. The added physical contact was making her more furious by the second. Sirius's temper was just starting to climb higher. Sirius shoved her off him and threw the scrunched up letter to the ground in frustration. He pointed at it with a trembling hand.

"THAT!" Sirius hollered in her face. Ziva recoiled. "_THAT _IS WHAT IS GOING ON WITH ME! MY MOTHER IS CONVINCED I'M THE WORST THING THAT EVER HAPPENED TO HER. SHE THINKS I'M A DISAPPOINTMENT TO MY FAMILY NAME! HOW ELSE AM I SUPPOSED TO ACT, LIKE I'M HAPPY?! NO! I'M DON'T WITH HER AND I'M DONE WITH EVERYTHING ELSE!"

Sirius shuddered with anger, his body shaking as his hand lowered to clasp his long black hair. He groaned in frustration and kicked at the dust at his feet, turning away from an absolutely shocked Ziva.

Ziva swallowed after a moment of silence and picked up the letter. She smoothed it out and read it hastily. After seeing what his mother wrote, she looked back at Sirius, who was now pacing furiously in front of her.

"Sirius…" Ziva tried.

"No, you know what?" Sirius said, his voice almost hoarse from shouting. "I don't need your sympathy, Ziva. I don't need it."

"I wasn't going to give you sympathy, Sirius-,"

"Why do you even care?" Sirius asked.

Ziva winced. She remembered when Remus asked her the same question. She remembered the hurt coming from him and felt the anger from Sirius. She fought to control herself.

"Because you're my friend, and I care about you." Ziva told him honestly.

"You shouldn't." Sirius said to her.

Ziva shot him a look and stood up straight.

"Well, I do. So, suck it up." Ziva said forcefully. Sirius looked over at her, stunned. "You'd better get used to me being around, Sirius, because I'm going to nag you until we get all of the secrets out in the open. That's what friends do. They help each other."

For some reason, Sirius felt his anger fleeing him. A grin grew crooked on his face.

"You know, I never thought you'd be this gutsy, Ziva. For a Ravenclaw, you're sure acting a lot like a Gryffindor." Sirius told her.

Feeling the change in atmosphere, Ziva smiled a little too.

"Get used to it."

The afternoon bell rang, signaling the end of classes. Peter, James, Remus and Sirius made their way up to Dumbledore's study for their meeting. The boys chatted excitedly about their Animagus.

"What D'you think we'll be? I hope I'm something fast, like a Cheetah!" James said enthusiastically.

"I hope I am too! Maybe we'll get the same!" Peter said hopefully, smiling brightly.

"You can't get the same," Remus told them distractedly. "You can't choose your Animagus. Your Animagus is whatever animal your inner traits are most like."

Peter and James's faces dropped.

"That's no fun! I wanted to choose." James whined.

"So did I." Peter pouted.

The four boys came to the statue of the Griffin in front of Dumbledore's office.

"Did anyone remember the password McGonagall gave us at lunch?" Sirius asked them. Peter shook his head and James shrugged nervously. However, as usual, Remus sighed and turned to the door.

"Fuzzy Peaches." He said to the statue. It groaned to life and moved out of the way to reveal the staircase up to his office. Remus led the charge without being told to and came to the door first. He rapped his knuckles against the wooden door.

"Enter." Said a voice from within. Remus obeyed, opening the door and stepping inside, the others following in suite.

Remus saw the wonder of Dumbledore's study which he'd seen only once before when he and his parents had come to talk to Dumbledore about Remus's condition in his First Year. Dumbledore was very kind and gentle towards Remus and had always said hello to him every time they passed. Remus quite admired him.

Professor Dumbledore was sitting at his large desk with his pet Phoenix Fawkes on its golden perch. He was writing with a quill when Remus stepped inside and then he set it down and looked down at them. Professor McGonagall was also in the room, standing on the left side of Dumbledore. He stood up from his chair and smiled at all of them, even though Sirius, James and Peter were staring gobsmacked around the room at the amazing instruments and objects Dumbledore had.

"Hello, boys," Professor Dumbledore said to get their full attention. "Thank you for coming."

The boys nodded nervously in response.

"So, as I understand it, you have all agreed to help Mr. Lupin on his nights of transformation. Is that correct?"

James, Sirius and Peter all nodded. Remus fidgeted with his jumper.

"And you have all agreed to become Animagus on these nights as well. Is that correct?"

The three of them nodded again. Professor Dumbledore smiled at them all.

"Very well. Now, normally, becoming an Animagus is a very time-consuming task, but I have made it easier for you. For now, and until you learn how to cast the spell by yourself, which will take quite a bit of effort and studying on your part-," (Sirius and James exchanged pained looks) "-you will come up to my office where either Professor McGonagall or I will transform each of you into your Animagus and you will accompany Mr. Lupin to his transformation. Professor McGonagall and I have, in fact, built a safe place for Mr. Lupin to go for that time as well. I'm sure you are all aware that there was a tree planted on the grounds of Hogwarts."

James, Sirius and Peter exchanged dark looks.

"You mean the same tree that caused the first Quidditch game to be canceled?" James snarled while Peter crossed his arms. Dumbledore raised an eyebrow.

"Yes, the very same one," Dumbledore told him, peering at James over his half-moon spectacles. James felt a little ashamed and was quiet once again. "That tree is a passageway to a Shack of which we built just outside of Hogsmead. That Shack will be where Mr. Lupin will go during his transformations. Does everyone understand?"

All four of them nodded this time. Remus felt very guilty – they had planted a tree that caused Quidditch to be canceled for the entire school _and _they built a Shack where he could go for transformations. He didn't want them to go through so much trouble for him.

"Now, this tree is extremely dangerous. It is called a Whomping Willow."

"Why is it called that?" James asked him curiously.

"It is so aptly named because it does, in fact, 'whomp' whatever tries to come near it." Professor Dumbledore said with a slight smirk on his old face. He seemed to enjoy this thought. "That is why it is such a perfect way to conceal Mr. Lupin. There is no other way inside the Shack other than the Whomping Willow and only select few know how to get through to it."

"That's the other question I have, Professor," James interrupted. "How will we get through it?"

"Well, we're about to find out," Dumbledore said excitedly, pulling out his wand from within the pocket of his violet robes. The boys listened intently. "Now, I will attempt to transform you into your Animagus. At first, it will be uncomfortable, but after the first try, you will be absolutely fine. It will be like second nature to you. Now, if you are all ready." Dumbledore said, branching his wand at the three of them. Sirius, James and Peter all nodded nervously. Dumbledore raised his wand and swung it down three times.

Three jets of golden light hit Sirius, James and Peter in the chest. The light seemed to absorb into their bodies and it made them glow gold for a few moments before they felt their bones begin to shrink and a tingling sensation start all over their bodies. It was quite uncomfortable. It felt very much like rapid growing pains. Soon, however, the spell had done the trick, and in front of Professor Dumbledore, Professor McGonagall and Remus stood three animals where James, Sirius and Peter stood, their Hogwarts robes on the floor at their feet.

Where Sirius originally stood was a very large, shaggy black dog. It stared around the room at all of them curiously and a bark escaped its yellow teeth. Beside him was Peter, who had transformed into a garden rat. Peter looked at his paws and gave a squeak of fear, curling into a ball of brown fur, and finally, where James had stood, there was a very large, very tall stag with long antlers and a slender neck. It blinked in confusion. Remus felt the odd sensation to laugh at the three of them.

Dumbledore clapped excitedly at the three of them, simply beaming.

"Very, very nice! This will do very nicely! The pairing is simply perfect for this situation. You see boys, on the Whomping Willow, there is a knot that paralyzes the tree so it can't take a swing at you. Seeing as Mr. Pettigrew is a rat and is so small, he can go around the branches and press on the knot to paralyze the tree so all of you can go through!"

Peter, who had snuck a look up at Dumbledore from beneath his worm-like tail now squeaked in horror and hid his head again, only the tufts of hair on his ears showing above his fatty body.

"This is spectacular! Don't you think, Professor McGonagall?" Dumbledore asked her excitedly. But, McGonagall was staring at her three students as though she was seeing something very disturbing.

"Well, spectacular isn't exactly how I'd put it-,"

"Now, this will work brilliantly. You're all common enough to blend in so even if you're caught, you just have to act like your animal. It will get easier, I assure you." Dumbledore told them.

"Uh, Professor Dumbledore, sir?" McGonagall said hesitantly.

"Yes, Minerva?"

"I think we should transform them back now."

Dumbledore seemed to shock himself back into reality.

"Oh, of course!" and with a wave of his wand, the three boys stood human again in his office, except without any clothes on whatsoever, their robes still lying on the floor.

McGonagall turned with a yelp of disgust, hiding her eyes, Dumbledore averted his gaze and Remus just burst out laughing at the three of them. He couldn't hold it in any longer. Sirius, Peter and James all tried to hide their private parts.

"I suggest you put on your robes, gentlemen." Dumbledore said calmly, still looking pleasantly at one of his silver instruments. They didn't have to be asked twice.

Fully clothed once more, the boys got ready to leave for bed (they had missed dinner because of the length of the meeting) but Professor Dumbledore pulled Remus aside quickly while the others, even McGonagall, waited outside.

"How are your classes this term, Mr. Lupin?" Dumbledore asked him gently, staring over his half-moon spectacles at Remus.

"They're great, sir. I couldn't be happier with my classes." He said honestly. Dumbledore nodded.

"Has your situation made it difficult to complete schoolwork? I've heard nothing but raving reviews from all of your teachers." Dumbledore told him.

"Thank you, sir, but no, I'm usually fine finishing schoolwork." Remus lied. It was very difficult for him some days. Dumbledore nodded at him again.

"Is there anything I can do to accommodate you? give you more time for work, ask for private lessons with some of the teachers?"

"No, I don't think those are necessary, sir, but thank you all the same." Remus thanked him. Dumbledore measured Remus's peaky face.

"Remus, you are a very brave young man, you know that, don't you?" Dumbledore asked. Remus's cheeks went slightly red.

"Yes, sir." He said quietly.

"And you know that anything that you need help with, people will be there, right?"

"Yes, sir." He said. Dumbledore's eyes bore into Remus's. They felt piercing.

"I am very sorry about your father, Remus."

Remus felt himself flinch, but he nodded in thanks anyway.

"He was a brilliant man. I knew your father for many years. I am always here if you wish to talk or get things off your chest. I know how hard it is to lose someone so close to you." Dumbledore told him.

Remus nodded, now looking down at his hands to avoid his eyes.

"Thank you, sir. It means a great deal." Remus said quietly. Dumbledore nodded again.

"Don't thank me, Remus. I am here to help in whatever means necessary," Dumbledore got up and led Remus to his office door. "If you ever need anything, you know where my office is." He gave him a smile which Remus managed to give back.

"Thank you, Professor Dumbledore. I'll see you later." Remus said. Dumbledore smiled and nodded at him as Remus left to rejoin James, Sirius and Peter. The four of them walked down the hall towards the Gryffindor Common Room.

"That was bloody brilliant, huh?!" said James excitedly once they were out of earshot of McGonagall. "I'm a deer! Can you believe it?"

"It's a stag, idiot." Sirius smirked.

"Whatever! It's still cool!"

"I'm a rat! I can sneak all sorts of places now, can't I?" Peter said brightly.

"'Course you can! You'd better steal some food for us down in the kitchens, eh?" James said to which Peter beamed excitedly.

The four of them turned a corner and into another corridor as they continued talking. However, none but Remus noticed a shadow of something above them blocking the light from the lamps. When he looked up, he froze and the others turned to see what he was looking at. Their eyes directed towards the ceiling and, to their utter shock and horror, a person hung, suspended in mid-air, her back arched, and completely silent. She seemed to be passed out and her head had been shaved off.

"Whoa! Who the hell is that?" James exclaimed, his eyes wide as he stared at the girl, who rotated slightly as she hung.

"I dunno. Is she dead?" Peter asked, trying to see her face.

"No, I can see her breathing." Remus said, peering up at the girl. From what he could see, her face was disfigured by some sort of stinging jinx.

"We'd better get her down," Sirius said. He pulled out his wand. "_Accio Mercury!" _he summoned his broomstick, an older, but workable model.

Before anyone could say anything else, another person turned the corner into the corridor from the opposite side of the room, holding books. Lily Evans saw the girl in midair before she saw the four boys standing under her. Lily's green eyes widened.

"What happened?" she rushed over, staring up at the girl. She directed her attention to James with a nasty look on her face. "What did you do?" she growled.

James looked hurt and affronted.

"Me? Why me?" he turned to look at Sirius for help. "Why is it always me?"

"This better not be one of your awful pranks, Potter! The last time you used a spell like that, it nearly broke someone's neck!" Lily exclaimed.

"Okay, one; Snivilus is always an exception and was worth docking the House Points and two; I didn't do this to that girl! We found her like this, didn't we boys?" said James. The three boys nodded vigorously at Lily, who continued to glare at them. She sighed and looked up at the girl.

"What are we going to do? How are we going to get her down?" She asked.

As though answering her question, they all heard a whooshing sound and Sirius's Mercury broomstick came zooming into the hall.

"Like this." Sirius said as he snatched his broom. He mounted it and kicked off, flying up towards the ceiling. He flew until he reached the girl and gently grabbed her, pulling her onto his broom on his lap. With her safely secured, Sirius dove and touched down onto the floor once again. James and Lily immediately took the girl from her and laid her down on the floor flat. Sirius threw his broom away and knelt beside Peter, who was looking at her now too.

The girl was unrecognizable, her face tilted towards the floor. The left side of her face was puffed up like she'd gotten an allergic reaction from a food she'd eaten. The skin of her face was also bruised and her lip was bleeding – someone had beat her up. Her left eye was so puffed up, it was swollen together. Remus was right, though. She was breathing. Lily pressed her fingers to the crook of the girl's neck, feeling her pulse.

"Stinging Jinx," Lily observed as she stared at her face. "She's stable for now. She fainted."

"Who is she?" James asked again.

"Maybe she just got caught in a duel by accident." Peter suggested. However, to Remus and Sirius, something about the girl seemed oddly familiar.

"Does she have any books or papers that say who she is?" Remus asked, looking around for an abandoned satchel or textbook.

"No. She's in Ravenclaw, though." Lily said, seeing the blue crest on the breast pocket of the girl's Hogwarts uniform.

"Maybe we should get McGonagall, or Flitwick. She needs to go to the Hospital Wing." Remus told them. Everyone nodded. Peter got up.

"I'll go." He volunteered.

Before he started walking, however, Lily turned the girl's face to see if there was any other injuries she had sustained, and gasped. All four boys wheeled in her direction again. They all recoiled. On the right side of the girl's face, there was a familiar red scar running down her skin, which had not been touched by the Stinging Jinx. This side of the girl was recognizable. For a moment, they had to let it register in their heads who they were looking at – the remainder of a pretty face obscured by a scar, a shaped black eyebrow and the slightest bit of blue iris was showing from underneath her half-opened eye. All five of them realized who the girl was: it was Ziva.

Sirius heart gave an odd jolt of surprise and Remus felt as though he was going to be sick. James stared with his mouth open in shock and Peter's watery blue eyes widened. Immediately, he turned and ran as fast as his little legs could carry him.

"Tell them to meet us in the Hospital Wing!" James shouted at Peter as he ran. Lily's eyes were wide with horror as she stared at her friend.

"Ziva." She whispered weakly. Sirius had immediately snatched her hand, looking terrified and Remus swallowed.

That's when Lily noticed something in Ziva's clenched hand. It was a piece of parchment crumpled up to fit into her palm. Lily took it out and smoothed it out. The note had three simple words on it in a handwriting she knew as Bellatrix Black's.

_Got you, Mudblood._

Lily remembered that day outside the Herbology greenhouses when she'd saved Ziva from Narsissa, Bellatrix and Pepper. She remembered Narsissa promise her that she'd be bullying Ziva even more now that Lily tried to stop them and she figured this was them sending her a message. They meant to plant Ziva's body here – they knew that Lily came down this corridor to get to the Gryffindor Common Room. They knew exactly how to get Lily's attention. This was all because of her.

"She has to get to the Hospital Wing, _now!" _Remus finally gasped.

Without a word, Sirius picked Ziva up gently in his arms and carried her to the Hospital Wing, James, Remus and Lily on his tail. He managed to get her inside the doors where the nurse gasped in shock at the sight of her and snatched her from Sirius. She called a few other nurses over as well, their wands out. one started making a potion and the others began muttering enchantments, trying to revive her from her unconscious state. The head nurse began to push them out.

"You have to leave, now!" the nurse said.

"We don't want to leave!" Sirius yelled. "We want to stay with her!"

"Please, let us stay!" Lily pleaded. But the nurse wouldn't listen – she pushed them out the door and it slammed shut in their faces, leaving the four of them in stunned, shocked silence.


	16. Chapter 15

Chapter fifteen: Hiccoughs and '_Hogwarts: an insider'_

For two days they waited to see Ziva, but every time they even got near the Hospital Wing, they were steered away. Professor McGonagall questioned all four of the boys and Lily about what they thought happened. Peter and James had no idea and neither did Remus, but he suspected it had something to do with people bullying her. Sirius and Lily both had the same answer: that it was Narsissa, Bellatrix and Pepper. Professor McGonagall told them that she would ask the girls if they knew anything about it but until they had proof, there was no chance she could give them their rightful punishment.

Lily was furious. She was absolutely livid at the fact that nobody but Sirius believed her story or that the girls did it. Even in her classes, Lily seemed very distracted.

In Professor Slughorn's potions class, Lily sat in her usual spot beside her pewter cauldron, staring at the burner. Her thoughts were lost inside her head as Slughorn droned on about Frog Spawn and how it helps make an excellent Elixir of Confidence. A sudden rap on her shoulder brought her out of her daydream and Lily looked over to see Severus standing at her table, his cauldron beside hers. This meant it was time to work on their potion. Severus would stand with the Slytherins until Slughorn told them which potion to make and then he would journey over to her table which, until quite recently, she shared with her friends in Gryffindor. However, since becoming friends with Ziva, all of her friends seemed to disappear as though they didn't want to share Lily with the Freak. So, now Lily sat alone, except for Severus, who was company enough for her.

"Uh, oh, sorry Severus. Which potion are we making?" Lily asked distractedly. Severus gave her a smirk.

"Spasm Draught. Page 394." Severus told her, gesturing to her copy of 'Advanced Potion making.' Lily nodded and quickly opened the book to the page, quickly scanning over the intro.

"'_Spasm Draught_'," Lily read aloud. "'_Supposedly one of the most intriguing and laughable potions ever created, the Spasm Draught is used to make the drinker have uncontrollable body spasms, which include seizures, the common Charlie Horse, and uncontrollable and sometimes violent twitching_'," she blinked. "I don't see what's laughable about this." she said irritably.

"Keep reading," Severus said, grinning. "You'll understand."

Lily obeyed, scanning her green eyes down the page once more to finish the paragraph.

"'_Also, breathing in the fumes of this potion is just as likely to work on someone as drinking it. If one inhales the fumes of the Spasm Draught, that person will most likely have several coughing fits or very long bouts of hiccoughs, both of which cannot be cured by any spell or potion known to Wizardkind and will have to be left alone until the effects wear off_,'" Lily ended. She looked up at Severus, who smirked at her. "So, you're saying I'm going to die coughing making this potion?" Lily asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Of course not," Severus held up two vials: one contained a red, gooey-looking liquid and the other contained a green smoke. "We have to inhale this-," he held up the green vial. "-and drink this." he held up the red vial.

"Excuse me? What's in those?" Lily asked in disgust. Severus held up the red one.

"Skunk Blood. It prevents the fumes from entering our lungs from our mouths. This-," he held up the green vial. "-is peppermint turned into a gas. It blocks the fumes from getting in through our nose. If we use good doses of this during the potion making, we should be fine. We have to make sure that we keep applying it throughout the process, every three minutes."

Lily looked at it doubtfully.

"Okay, fine." She took the bottles from Severus. She took a sip of the Skunks blood and then a whiff of the peppermint and when Severus followed in suite, they began.

Lily lit her cauldron and began reading the textbook. She took the salamander's eye and cut it in neat quarters on her cutting board. She put the quarter in as instructed. Severus watched her face become clouded with thought once again.

"You okay?" Severus asked her as he did his work as well. Lily shrugged as she put her Earthworm hearts in the cauldron and put up the heat on the burner.

"I'm fine."

"You seem a bit distracted." Severus noted. Lily shot him a look.

"I'm fine," She said shortly. Severus backed off and Lily sighed. "I'm sorry. I'm just so angry."

"About the Freak girl? I heard about that." Severus said as he added his Frog eye to his potion, the fumes turning a bright pink exactly like they were supposed to.

"Her name is Ziva," Lily glared. "And who'd you hear it from?"

"It's all around the school. And no, Lily, I didn't hear it from Bellatrix or Narsissa or Pepper. I know you would ask me that." Severus added when he saw her mouth open. Lily closed it and watched her fumes turn pink too.

"Well, I know it was them," Lily muttered. "It's only a matter of time before I find the proof."

"It's time." Severus muttered, handing her the two red and green vials again. Lily repeated the drinking and sniffing routine.

"I just wish I could find something, but they covered their tracks too well!" Lily growled frustrated, pouring the contents of her Stewed Mandrake into the bubbling cauldron.

"Maybe you aren't looking in the right places." Severus added casually. Lily froze, looking over at him with narrowed eyes. He avoided her gaze.

"…You know something, don't you?" Lily asked suspiciously. Severus continued to work on his potion as he shrugged.

"I can't say that I do, no."

"But you heard something, didn't you? You always eavesdrop on Regulus Black's gang! You know something!"

"Shh, keep your voice down." Severus muttered, shooting a glance at Lucius Malfoy, Regulus, Bellatrix and Narsissa, who were all making their potions sloppily.

"If I'm right about this, I have the right to know whether I'm accusing the people who almost killed Ziva!" Lily whispered harshly.

"Now, don't you think that's a bit dramatic, Lily? She didn't die." Severus told her quietly.

"Of course she didn't! But Professor McGonagall told me that the jinxes they used to blow up her face swelled her throat as well. If we hadn't found her, she would have died from suffocation." Lily told him.

Severus looked down and away as he poured some crushed up owl beak into his potion.

"Well," he said slowly. "It's a good thing you found her then."

Frustration boiled inside of Lily's stomach. she leaned so close to Severus that she could see the part where his pupil was slightly darker than his iris.

"Don't you care?" she whispered frantically. "Do you care _at all_ that someone was almost killed by your buddies over there?!"

"They aren't my buddies," Severus shot back, his black eyes on her green ones. "I just share the same Common room with them."

"And?"

"And…I hear things." Severus said hesitantly.

"And?!" Lily pushed on. Severus sighed in defeat.

"Look, all I've heard is that they're trying to do something to Potter." The last word shot out of his mouth like vomit as his pale face turned into a snarl of hatred.

Lily blinked in confusion.

"What? Why him?" Lily asked.

"They're plotting something dangerous, something to kick him off the Quidditch team or something." Severus said indifferently. Lily groaned.

"C'mon! Is that all you guys think about? Quidditch? You're saying this is all about Quidditch?"

"I don't know, okay, Lily? I told you what I heard." Severus told her firmly. Before Lily could respond at all, there was a huge explosion and she heard the snide voices of Bellatrix, Narsissa and Pepper cackling loudly from beside them. When Lily turned, Molly Weasley was standing at her cauldron, looking hurt, angry and covered from head to toe in soot from what appeared to be her potion exploding. Immediately, as the potion had exploded all over her, she began hiccoughing loudly which sent their laughter into relapse and which caused Lucius and Regulus to start laughing as well. Molly's plump face went red with embarrassment as she tried to stifle the noise behind her hand.

"Well, put it this way, Molly," Narsissa said snidely, smirking over at her with her dark eyes. "You already looked like a toad before this, but now you can sound like one too!"

The chorus of Slytherins burst out laughing as Molly turned beet red. She snatched her backpack from the ground and hurried off out the door, the sound of her hiccoughs following her all the way into the hall. Lily was sure that she saw tears starting in her eyes as she wheeled out the door. Professor Slughorn, who hadn't noticed anything until after Molly left, just said "Oh, well, she should be going to the Hospital Wing – that was very proactive of her," and carried on.

Lily, who had known Molly Weasley and was indebted to her courageous opinions at one time in her life, dug in her pocket to whip out her wand, turning to face the chortling Slytherins. However, Severus beat her to it and, without turning, he swished his wand at the Slytherin table. For a minute, Lily thought nothing happened. She turned to look at Severus as the laughter died down a bit and they started on their work.

"What was that?! You didn't do anything to them!" Lily exclaimed. Severus merely handed her the two vials again.

"Time to re-apply." Severus told her, having already done so. Lily narrowed her eyes, but did as he said.

"You know, if you're going to take care of bullies, you should do it the right-," Lily was interrupted by Lucius Malfoy's voice

"Hey! Where'd our vials go?!"

When Lily turned, every Slytherin that laughed at Molly was searching frantically for their vials. They seemed to have gone mysteriously missing…

Bellatrix and Narsissa were trying their best to hold their breath as they searched, not wanting to have the same fate as Molly. However, soon, they couldn't hold their breath any longer and took a deep breath; bad mistake. Narsissa and Bellatrix had begun to hiccough, Narsissa being dainty and trying to keep them quiet, and Bellatrix having explosions of sound and convulsions. The class burst out laughing since after every hiccough, Bellatrix would swear loudly. Regulus and Lucius had gotten a coughing fit from the potion and couldn't seem to talk. It was like a chorus of madness. Lily turned to Severus, who had a slight smirk on his pale face and her face split into a huge grin.

"Did you-?" she asked.

"Make their vials disappear, yeah." Severus said with a hint of proudness in his voice. Lily laughed along with everyone else and turned to smile at Bellatrix, Narsissa, Lucius and Regulus grabbed their stuff and began to exit the classroom. Just then, Bellatrix caught sight of Severus and Lily's grins and her dark eyes widened as she pointed a finger at them.

"They –_HIC_- did this to us!" she screamed, her face wild with anger. The other Slytherins didn't stop; they continued to pull her along as she yelled threats at them. "YOU'RE –_HIC_- DEAD MEAT, EVANS! –_HIC_- YOU'LL PAY FOR WHAT YOU'VE –_HIC_- DONE! YOU'LL –_HIC_- PAY!" her screams and hiccoughs could be heard down the hall for several minutes. Lily was clutching her sides, laughing as Severus grinned at her.

"Remind me to never get on your bad side." Lily gasped once she could breathe. Severus grinned down at her and spoke again.

"And that, ladies and gentlemen, is exactly how the Spasm Drought works."

The next morning while everyone was having breakfast, Sirius came into the Great hall, carrying an armful of heavy books. It was certainly a sight, seeing as Sirius hated books and hardly ever picked them up to read them. But as he steered his was through the people (whilst getting a shocked look from Professor McGonagall at the teacher's table) he sat down beside James and Peter, who made room for him immediately. He put the heavy books down and heaved a sigh, sitting on the bench with them. Sirius looked over Remus's shoulder and saw Lucius, his brother Regulus, Bellatrix and Narsissa sitting at the Slytherin table. Bellatrix still had explosive hiccoughs that echoed through the Great Hall and Narsissa still had them as well, although they were much quieter. Regulus and Lucius were coughing every couple seconds and all four of them were glaring evilly at Lily, who was eating her cornflakes with a grin on her face. Sirius smirked, knowing she must have done something, and turned to them.

"What in the name of Merlin's jockstrap is this?" James exclaimed, looking at the pile of books amidst their plates of toast and eggs. Remus, who was sitting opposite them, grabbed the top book and looked at it.

"'_Magical maps: an instructional guide'?"_ Remus read the title out loud, bewildered. "What are you reading this for?"

"Well, I was thinking last night; you know how Narsissa and her cult knew where Ziva was going because she always takes the same way to and from her classes, right?"

"Right." Said Peter, James and Remus in unison.

"Considering the fact that Ziva has little to no control over whether she'll be attacked again, I think we should help her stay safe." Sirius told them, searching around for a book.

"How? By drowning in books?" James asked incredulously. Sirius finally found the book and grabbed the other book from Remus's hands. He held them out so the three boys could see the two titles. _Magical Maps: an instructional guide _and _Hogwarts: a look inside. _James and Peter stared at the books confusedly, but Remus's face dawned with understanding.

"We'll make a map of Hogwarts." Said Remus, his eyes on the books.

"So that Ziva can go to her classes different ways and doesn't have to worry about the girls catching her. According to _Hogwarts: a look inside, _there are tons of secret passageways around the castle."

"Wait a minute," Remus said quickly. "I've never seen that book in the library before. Where did you get it?"

Sirius had the tiniest bit of guilt on his face.

"The Restricted Section. I had to get it! We have to protect Ziva. She's coming back to school in a few days." Sirius said with a slightly frantic tone.

"Sirius, you do realize that it's going to take at least two months to finish this map, if we do it at all, right?" Remus told him. Sirius scrambled to think of something.

"Well, then, we'll just have to stick with her until the map is finished!"

"Oh no, no way!" said James, looking apprehensive. "I do not want to spend my entire day with her!"

"We'll take shifts! Besides, James, you owe her one." Sirius said.

"What? How?" James exclaimed. Sirius gave him a look.

"She saved you from getting killed by a werewolf, remember? She figured it out without having to go into the Forbidden Forest." Sirius reminded him. James stared at his eggs bitterly, crossing his arms stubbornly.

"She didn't _save _me-,"

"She did, James. And you owe it to her to be there for her until she's safe. We all do," Sirius looked around the table. Remus said nothing and Peter looked slightly hesitant, staring at James's crabby expression. Sirius sighed heavily. "Alright, look; we all have something we can get out of making a map of Hogwarts! Think of it: Peter, you can sneak into any place you want! You can get all the latest news on people by reading the map of who's in the castle. Remus, you can use it for late night sneaks to the library, and, James, you can use it to intercept Evans! And we can all use it to play pranks on people and avoid teachers too! It's a brilliant idea!"

James and Peter exchanged a glance and turned back looking pleased with this idea. They nodded.

"Alright, deal. Only if we get to use it as much as she does." James said to Sirius. Sirius beamed.

"Fantastic! I'm going to get working!" Sirius began to leave with all of his books, but James interrupted him.

"Hey, mate," he said. "You might want to go check the Quidditch tryout list." James hinted. The whole Gryffindor table went silent and all of a sudden, there was an uproar of scraping benches as almost every Gryffindor got up and ran out of the Great Hall. peter got up so fast, he toppled over but managed to hobble after everyone as they rounded the corner and dove up the stairs and into the Gryffindor common room. A crowd formed around the bulletin board and Peter tried to push through. There were several loud shouts from one, two, three, four, five, six people. Some fist pumped as they departed with huge grins on their faces. The rest turned away, looking disappointed. Somebody even looked like they were about to cry. Peter finally fought his way through, Sirius right by his side and as the crowd disappeared, Peter's eyes were set on the list. He looked for his name, but Sirius had exclaimed in joy beside him. Peter's blue eyes scrolled frantically down the list, but he couldn't find it. He saw Sirius and James's names, but not his, and then he saw where his name should be, another boy's name. Peter's heart sunk into his shoes as Sirius looked over at him and his grin melted.

"Oh…Peter, I'm sorry, mate," Sirius said, clapping him on the shoulder. Then, Sirius said something he'd said for three years. "Maybe you'll get it next year." He walked away. Peter stared up at the list with his watery blue eyes, knowing it wasn't his accident with the Quidditch ring that made him lose a spot on the team.


End file.
